2022 January 21

Daily news wrap-up

Jan/21/2022: New nuclear plant could be 2x more powerful __ About CSTO & borders... __ Armenian "Marvel" superhero __ 2021 crime stats __ Diplomatic meetings __ Neighborhood news __ You're a farmer now __ Funeral mafia __ High-tech rehab center __ Gasprom did an oopsie __ Sports & music news __ +++
by ar_david_hh

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Your 12-minute Friday digest in 3101 words.

the new nuclear power plant could be twice as powerful as Metsamor

You may recall from [yesterday's news](https://www.reddit.com/r/armenia/comments/s8uuca/jan202022_armenia_no_restriction_on_karabakh/) that Armenia and Russia signed an agreement to proceed with the efforts to build a new nuclear bloc in Armenia to replace the aging Metsamor NPP. The decision was made last year after negotiations between the Armenian government and Russian companies/authorities.

Metsamor NPP chief about the new plant: Metsamor NPP will last until 2026, followed by more renovations that will extend it to 2036.

The construction of the new NPP will require 10-12 years [2034, I did the math, you're welcome].

Russia will retrain Armenian experts for the new NPP. They will study in Russian universities, just as current NPP employees do.

We've also considered the construction of small nuclear stations. There is an opportunity for GeoProMining to build one in Syunik. [GeoProMining is a Russian gold miner and a large taxpayer that recently purchased 60% of Zangezur copper shares from fellow shareholders, before donating 25% to the Armenian government for nationalization].

The new NPP must be equal or greater than the current 500-600 MW bloc. I won't rule out that we might have two blocs with a combined 1,200 MW. It will depend on energy consumption and export potential. //

Armenia and Iran are currently working on increasing the volumes of electricity-gas exchange.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073587.html

Georgians took to the streets to protest electricity price hikes

Crowds gathered in three large cities. The opposition party demanded prices to revert to 2015 levels.

They complained that the tariffs have gone from 11 Georgian cents in 2012, to 26 this year.

Full pricing in the link: https://factor.am/466510.html

meetings were held between Armenian and European officials

Several officials met the EU delegation today, which included French officials, European Council and other EU representatives. The parties expressed satisfaction with the active AM-EU cooperation.

SecCon chief Armen Grigoryan noted the EU's role in democratic reforms and regional issues. The EU envoy they are currently working to address the POW issue.

MFA Mirzoyan emphasized the need to resume the OSCE negotiations.

Pashinyan discussed the results of Sochi and Brussels meetings and the need to resume OSCE negotiations.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073604.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073613.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073644.html

meetings between Armenian and Russian officials

Russian ambassador met Armenian officials to discuss regional topics.

CSTO secretary Zas: The situation in the region is stable thanks to Russian mediation. Practical work is needed to demarcate the AM-AZ border.

Russian MFA: The delimitation and demarcation of borders will be a significant step towards the normalization of AM-AZ relations. Demarcation and unblocking of trade should be treated as a priority. The process should launch ASAP.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073608.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073625.html

opposition's stance on border demarcation

HD faction leader Seyran Ohanyan: Only the Azeri troops should pull back from the encroached areas. Before we can conduct demarcation, the "enemy" states must become "neighbor" states. Once we are "neighbors", we should form a joint commission to draw the borders. The Soviet-era legal documents should be examined to understand where the real borders are.

... Seyran Ohanyan about CSTO in Kazakhstan and Armenia:

The government showed that they are capable of utilizing CSTO mechanisms with the Kazakhstan example. We are glad that Armenia chairs CSTO today. If the government was able to make it work elsewhere, they must do the same for Armenia. They must negotiate and convince CSTO.

Reporter: under your administration, too, whenever there was a border incident, CSTO would display inaction. Why weren't you able to convince CSTO?

Ohanyan: I left the MOD's position in October 2016. But before that, we were able to force CSTO leadership to visit the Armenian border with Nakhijevan to make a statement. {[Note: a similar visit took place last year. Zas visited the Armenian-Nakhijevan border](https://en.odkb-csto.org/news/news_odkb/v-erevane-sostoyalas-vstrecha-generalnogo-sekretarya-odkb-stanislava-zasya-s-premer-ministrom-respub/#loaded)}

Also, we didn't need CSTO to respond to such border incidents in the past. Our army was handling things. CSTO was meant to be a deterrent against Turkey. It would be shameful to contact CSTO after every border incident.

Reporter: Azeris used to regularly violate the ceasefire and kill people sitting in their homes in Tavush. Why was it "shameful" to contact CSTO about this?

Ohanyan: there were no [major] provocations at the time. Again, it would be shameful to request aid. We were informing them about the [minor] provocations.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073614.html https://factor.am/466162.html

Armenian peacekeeping unit returns from Kosovo

It was the latest group to finish their shift. The peacekeepers were greeted by a U.S. general visiting Armenia, and the MOD officials.

The peacekeepers that were recently sent to Kazakhstan had earlier served in Kosovo and elsewhere.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073678.html https://www.reddit.com/r/armenia/comments/ryh7uk/news_jan72022_1_weighing_tracking_cargo_trucks_2/

Kazakhstan wants to send vaccines to Armenia

Healthcare Minister met the Kazakh ambassador to discuss ongoing cooperation in the medical field.

Kazakhstan is producing vaccines. They discussed the possibility of sending some to Armenia.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073681.html

looks like Armenia might need some of those CSTO peacekeepers soon 👍

Armenia is facing a liquid petroleum gas deficit. Prices are expected to rise by 8% "soon". Some gas stations are out. A similar price hike happened in mid-2021. Today the LPG prices are even higher.

Experts: Our main import sources are Russia, Iran, and Iraq. Imports have reduced from the latter two, leaving Russia as the main source. LPG prices went significantly up in Russia, plus an increase in transport fees, plus difficulty with crossing the Lars checkpoint between Georgia and Russia, which is closed days and weeks at a time. Speculation is also a problem; some companies with LPG reserves intentionally manipulate prices.

Gas station owner: Lars checkpoint is often closed. There have been times when we were unable to import it for a month.

https://factor.am/466481.html

Armenian-Turkish diaspora about the attempts to normalize AM-TR relations

Constantinople Patriarch Sahak Mashalian: Every effort to strengthen cultural, work, and investment ties is valuable.

Agos newspaper editor Danzikyan: The decision to launch direct flights gave me optimism. The borders should open and relations should be established as first steps.

Toros Aljan, National Minorities Foundation: It's overdue. It is important that the language of friendship is returning. I hope the peace will also return.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073623.html

FBI raided a US House Representative's home related to Azerbaijan probe

FBI is investigating ties between Azerbaijan and several US businessmen. They also raided the home and office of Rep. Henry Cuellar. It's unclear if he is the main suspect.

In recent years Cuellar has served as a co-chair of the Congressional Azerbaijan Caucus, and repeatedly met with Azerbaijani officials, including the ambassador of Azerbaijan, Elin Suleymanov.

DOJ's Public Integrity Unit, which investigates bribery and government integrity, is involved in the investigation.

>Congressman Cuellar will fully cooperate in any investigation, a spokesperson for Cuellar said

Hay Dat office: Azeri ambassador Suleimanov has left the city one step ahead of the FBI. Azerbaijan's corruption in Washington has long been an "open secret".

https://abcnews.go.com/US/fbi-raid-house-democrats-home-related-azerbaijan-probe/story?id=82384118 https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/19/politics/henry-cuellar-fbi-texas-home/index.html https://www.foxnews.com/politics/fbi-rep-cuellars-home-related-corruption-investigation-tied-azerbaijan https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073694.html

Erdogan wants to fire his statistics chief after a devastating inflation report

National statistics institute reported 36% December inflation, the highest in 20 years.

>There has been an artificial increase in inflation in Turkey “resulting from attacks” and the institute did not emphasize this enough when reporting the data, the source said, according to Diken. Erdoğan has been forced to correct this mistake in his statements, he said.

Erdogan went to see a cardiologist

Israeli media writes that Erdogan recently consulted with renowned Israeli doctor-cardiologist Itzhak Shapira, who helps world leaders. It's unclear whether Erdogan has heart problems or it's something else.

https://ahvalnews.com/turkey-inflation/erdogan-angered-inflation-data-statistics-chief-could-depart-report https://factor.am/466519.html https://factor.am/466505.html https://www.ynetnews.com/article/sjvrugv6y https://hamodia.com/2022/01/20/report-erdogan-being-treated-by-israeli-cardiologist/

Funeral Services...

... has a corruption problem, according to prosecutors who urged the Yerevan administration to do something about yearslong machinations at the agency.

Prosecutors have many examples of corruption relating to funeral services, graveyard land allocations, etc. They came up with ways to solve the problem and asked the city to implement the reforms.

There are problems with the lack of monitoring of how the land pieces are drawn and distributed. There are no mechanisms to check the authenticity of some documents. There is a conflict of interest issue relating to some ranking funeral officials.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073666.html

Russian peacekeepers transported an injured child from Artsakh to Yerevan on a helicopter

A car incident injured four children in Chartar village on Wednesday. One of them had to be airlifted to Yerevan hospital with broken bones which will require complex surgeries.

This is the first time since the ceasefire when a helicopter is being used for this purpose and "this quickly", said authorities.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073674.html

VIDEO: it's winter in Stepanakert (Artsakh)

https://youtu.be/mIPlW8iunJ4?t=5

overall crime increased 14% last year

Total: 30.2k vs 26.5k. Over 84% of all crime was mild or medium in severity.

The largest share of the increase came from thefts: +1,700. There was an increase in road incidents, fraud, and drugs.

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There were 60 murder incidents, up from 50.

Intentional bodily harm declined from 1024 to 976.

Serious injuries declined from 224 to 218.

Rape declined from 25 to 14.

Burglary declined from 1255 to 1192.

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58% of all active criminal cases have a suspect. That number is 34% for heavy crimes, and 58% for very heavy crimes.

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950 corruption crimes, from which 237 bribery (up), 129 abuse of power (down), etc.

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4.6k road incidents. 368 deaths. 6.7k injured.

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1,771 investigations against police offices. 587 were disciplined.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073684.html

why did burglaries decline in Lori province?

It declined by 10% last year. There were 129 incidents in total.

At the same time, the burglary crime clearance rate increased by 1%, at 19.4%.

Prosecutors believe the decline is due to a series of steps taken in 2021. They studied risky neighborhoods, installed 256 CCTV cameras and new locks on apartment complex building gates. The cameras proved to be very helpful, said ~~Sherlock~~ prosecutors.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073634.html

veterans' Rehabilitation Center for Heroes will use 3D tech for fear management

[A new veteran support center was built](https://youtu.be/iSUNmnJFRHM) last year in the Proshyan community near Yerevan. It's the first of its kind. The goal is to provide psychological, intellectual, and social rehabilitation treatments.

This year they plan to build a library, IT center, bakery, sewing facility, kitchen for learning how to cook, etc.

The building's second floor will give beds and treatment to soldiers and their families.

There is a fear management room. For the first time in the whole region, therapies for overcoming psychological problems will be conducted using 3D tech, said the Center.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073583.html www.civilnet.am/news/634011/a-new-rehabilitation-city-for-war-heroes/?lang=en

the company that created the first Armenian robot has raised $2 million in seed funding

TIME magazine recently named Expper Technologies' Robin the Robot one of the best innovations of the year. The bot helps hospital patients by engaging with them to reduce stress levels.

Robin is used in 12 medical institutions of the world, and will be installed in 100 American hospitals next year. "This is an unprecedented success not only for our team but for the whole of Armenia," said founder Karen Khachikyan.

They just raised $2m from several venture capitals. The team will expand from 25 to 60 employees.

https://time.com/collection/best-inventions-2021/6113107/robin-the-robot/ https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1067847.html https://www.venturecapitaljournal.com/health-tech-firm-expper-technologies-snags-2m-seed/ https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073670.html

Gasprom literally farted on Gyumri

Official about yesterday's "leak": Gas naturally doesn't have a smell so they have to add artificial smell as a protection mechanism so people will know whenever there is a leak. The gas employees used too much odorant and it ended up spreading across the city.

Gasprom-Armenia explains: A valve malfunctioned, leading to excessive amounts of odor being injected into the gas distribution network. As a result, the excessive odor temporarily spread during the regular use of natural gas. It wasn't a dangerous "gas leak".

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073591.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073638.html

you are a farmer, Harry

I'm a... what?

Sevan Shahbazyan is Yerevan's chief surgeon. Armen Hovhannisyan is an economst. They are friends. From now on, you can call them farmers.

They built a hydroponic greenhouse in village Hovtashat (Ararat) to grow European varieties of tomatoes. The annual yield is 40 tons. So far they only sell in the domestic market, but there are plans to export.

The surgeon: We were able to build this greenhouse with the help of ACBA Leasing and the state subsidy program

I love medicine and surgery and can't imagine my life without them. But there are also a lot of negative feelings: healthy people don't come to see a doctor. Often you are struggling between life and death. The negative feelings stay with you. I tried to create a place to get rid of them. One work does not hinder the other. //

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073630.html http://arka.am/en/news/business/surgeon_and_economist_start_a_new_business_video/

soccer star Henrikh Mkhitaryan turns 33

Heno is the Armenian national team captain and a midfielder at Roma. He was declared best Armenian player 10 times.

Pyunik - Metalurg - Borussia Dortmund - Manchester United - Arsenal - Roma.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073593.html

where is my new National Stadium, bro?

Soccer Federation and Education Ministry met today to discuss the joint creation of projects to promote soccer in Armenia.

Within the past 1.5 years, they built small soccer pitches in 90 villages. "The one in Tsovagyugh is particularly beautiful with a direct line of sight to Lake Sevan."

The Federation will retrain its sports doctors in Spain next month. "There is a shortage in Armenia."

The Federation has been in talks with potential investors to build a new sports stadium in Armenia. The negotiations continue.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073612.html

Rex Kalamian of Detroit Pistons will coach Armenian National Basketball Team

Detroit Pistons is an American basketball team. Its assistant coach Kalamian, a grandson of a Genocide survivor, will lead the Armenian national team. He will take over ahead of the June 28 European Championship.

>He previously had coaching terms with the Los Angeles Clippers, Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves, Sacramento Kings, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Toronto Raptors.

https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1073594.html

singer Ruben Hakhverdyan drops a clip of his Աշնանային էլեգիա song

https://youtu.be/Xz8tKnDMH6c?t=59

Armenian-French music band Ladaniva wins "Audience Sympathy" award

...at the EU-funded Music Moves Europe Awards 2022 (pop & modern genre). The band represented Armenia.

https://ec.europa.eu/culture/news/music-moves-europe-awards-2022-these-are-the-nominees https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073626.html

Parajanov's “Hakob Hovnatanyan” is the first Armenian film in the collection of New York's Museum of Modern Art

National Cinema Center of Armenia: the newly printed 35mm copies of the restored three short films by Parajanov have been donated to the MoMA in New York.

The films are HAKOB HOVNATANYAN (Armenia 1967), KYIV FRESCOS (Ukraine 1966), ARABESQUES ON THE PIROSMANI THEME (Georgia 1985).

One of the film sets is preserved in Armenia, other two were donated to Georgia and Ukraine respectively.

The restoration was carried out by the National Cinema Center and Hamo Beknazarov Project.

https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1073601.html

Pashinyan's brother-in-law wants Marvel-style Armenian superheroes to replace qyarts in tracksuits

QP MP Hracha Hakobyan: A wonderful movie "Amadeus" was filmed in the US in 1984. It was about Mozart and his death. The movie gave the impression that Salieri killed Mozart, while in reality Salieri was acquitted of charges. To this day, people think it was him. This is why the role of cinematography is so important in public life.

Spider-Man, Batman, and Captain America are all examples of [jackass teenage bully, BDSM guy in spandex, and an insecure man who has to walk around with a shield] heroes who commit acts of kindness. Armenian cinema also needs heroes with positive character.

Instead, Serj's media outlet gave us "Qare Dard" that had a [qyart] hero with a [red sweatwear](https://youtu.be/pCRmfsF0ETk?t=265), big belly, and thick neck. Children in every backyard started mimicking him with the same voice, same behavior. This is how we've been raising our kids.

A new movie was recently filmed and will be released soon. It's about an Armenian superhero named Vishap, I believe. I'd like to ask our media outlets and producers to give us more heroes with positive characters, instead of what we've been given all these years. //

GEM GEM GEM GEM GEM https://youtu.be/pCRmfsF0ETk?t=265

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073617.html https://youtu.be/BoFIi3qpF6Q

things got heated between ruling party MP and opposition-run media outlets

There was a debate between ruling and opposition MPs yesterday. It led to discussions about the quality of journalism in Armenia.

QP MP Vahagn Aleksanyan: Some media outlets spread hate in exchange for money every day. They can't tell the difference between verbal prostitution and journalism.

Real journalists should forgive me for saying that, but some reporters were actively encouraging the army to bring tanks to Yerevan [presumably in March 2021 during the "coup scare"]. They are immoral. Verbal prostitution in Armenia costs more than regular prostitution. //

The MP doubled down today, saying reporters who actively encouraged a coup and "incited physical violence against Pashinya's children" are "verbal prostitutes and not journalists", and that "real journalists know that this doesn't apply to them".

A union of journalists condemned the MP's remarks and called the behavior undemocratic. They demanded an apology.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073639.html https://factor.am/466322.html

nobody died from Covid yesterday

3.6k tested. 628 infected. 125 healed. 0 deaths.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073598.html

Covid vaccines will become mandatory for adults beginning March 15 for all adults in Austria

Approved by the Parliament with a 137-33 vote, it is the strictest in the EU. Violation costs $680-$4,000. 73% of Austrians are currently vaxxed.

Simultaneously, the government will retroactively distribute one lottery ticket for each vaccination. Every 10th vaccine shot guarantees a $568 voucher. The lottery budget is $1 billion.

Greece had earlier introduced penalties for unvaccinated seniors.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/20/europe/austria-covid-vaccine-mandate-vote-intl/index.html

iGorts program leads to another diasporan expert receiving a government job

Hundreds of diasporans were recently invited to Armenia to help the government. Many have received permanent jobs.

On Friday, Pashinyan appointed Sisian Boghossian (Պօղոսեան) to be the new head of the Tourism Committee.

Boghossian was an entrepreneur in Canadia before moving to Armenia as part of iGorts. She previously worked at the American University of Armenia and the Football Federation of Armenia.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073622.html

Armenian moms be like...

https://youtube.com/shorts/RWCbbtc10Js?feature=share

IMAGE: Hubble telescope captures a black hole that is forming stars, instead of absorbing them

It's 30 million light-years away, so calm down... The black hole is apparently contributing to a “firestorm” of new star formation taking place in the galaxy.

>[Gas can be seen swirling around the black hole] the outflow was moving about one million miles per hour, slamming into the dense gas like a garden hose hitting a pile of dirt and spreading out

https://petapixel.com/2022/01/19/hubble-captures-a-black-hole-that-is-forming-stars-not-absorbing-them/

top-10 bestseller children's books in December

6) Փիսիկի գանգատը ("Karen" the cat), by Hovhannes Tumanyan

5) Շաղգամը, by Atabek Khnkoyan

4) Ով է ապրում տնակում, by Vladimir Suteev

3) Շունն ու կատուն, by Tumanyan

2) колобок

1) Harry Potter and Philosopher's Stone, by J.K. Rowling

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1073120.html

more

The news in русский (by Impossible-Ad-).

News archive: http://www.armeniapedia.org/wiki/Daily_Anti-Corruption_Reports Donations: soldiers' families, humanitarian aid, US tax-deductible donation.

The accused are innocent unless proven guilty in the court of law, even if they "appear" guilty.

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Link to original report and comments: https://www.reddit.com/r/armenia/comments/s9kkum/jan212022_new_nuclear_plant_could_be_2x_more/