2023 October 3

Daily news wrap-up

Traitors vs Agents: How the parliament ratified the Rome Statute \\\ U.S. wants long-term monitoring mission in Nagorno-Karabakh \\\ France confirms mil. cooperation \\\ Vernatun 2: Vzgo Reloaded (in theaters near you) \\\ U.S. guv Sununu's mining in Nagorno-Karabakh
by ar_david_hh

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France: People of Nagorno-Karabakh are not leaving voluntarily, they were forced to leave

French FM Colonna: This is a terrible humanitarian disaster. France has allocated €12.5 million in aid to ensure livable conditions for the forcibly displaced people.

I must emphasize once again that what happened is a gross violation of international law. I feel the need to state this once again because we are hearing statements that people have voluntarily left their homes. That is not true. This lie will not fool anyone. //

[article,](https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/270656)

U.S. wants to send a long-term international monitoring group to Nagorno-Karabakh to find out if conditions allow for civilians to live there safely

STATE DEPT: Hundreds of thousands have departed. We don't know what percentage of them may want to come back, if the conditions allowed, if they felt sufficient assurances about their treatment if they would return, which is why we are reiterating our call for an independent international monitoring mission that would provide transparency and reassurance to the population of Nagorno-Karabakh that the rights and securities of ethnic Armenians would be protected. We continue to work with our allies and partners about what a more long-term mission ought to look like. We think there ought to be an international monitoring mission there to observe and guarantee them.

QUESTION: Was this an ethnic cleansing?

STATE DEPT: It’s not something I can speak to with any degree of finality from this podium. We take allegations of ethnic cleansing, genocide, or other atrocities seriously. We are in touch with contacts on the ground about the situation. We won’t shy from taking appropriate actions to respond to allegations of atrocities and promote accountability for those responsible for atrocities when we see evidence that they’ve taken place.

[article,](https://arka.am/en/news/politics/u_s_state_department_refrains_from_calling_exodus_of_100_000_nagorno_karabakh_armenians_to_armenia_e/) [article,](https://www.state.gov/briefings/department-press-briefing-october-2-2023/)

Russia has betrayed Armenian people by standing aside in Nagorno-Karabakh: EU's Charles Michel criticizes Russia and Azerbaijan

MICHEL: It is clear that Russia has betrayed the Armenian people. Russia wanted to have soldiers on the ground to guarantee this peace and security agreement. But we see that the [Azerbaijani] military operation was launched without the slightest reaction from the Russian peacekeepers. The European Union, on the other hand, had no military presence on the ground. //

EuroNews writes:

>Baku recently regained control of Nagorno-Karabakh from Armenian separatists after launching a military offensive. An estimated 100,000 ethnic Armenians have since fled in fear of persecution as Azerbaijani forces tighten their grip on the region.

>Experts say Baku's actions amount to a war crime, and Armenia has accused [Azerbaijan] of pursuing ethnic cleansing.

>Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has also condemned Russia for ignoring signs of Baku’s escalation and failing to protect Armenians

CHARLES MICHEL: I am extremely disappointed by the decision that was taken by Azerbaijan and I have expressed that very firmly to President Aliyev. It’s now up to Azerbaijan to show goodwill by engaging while respecting international law to protect the rights and security of the entire population that lives in Azerbaijan, including the Armenian population.

We are very committed to supporting Armenia, which is receiving a high number of refugees who have left their home region in Nagorno-Karabakh.

We also need to remain engaged at a political and diplomatic level to make sure that there’s a very clear reaffirmation of the respect for the territorial integrity of Armenia. //

[article,](https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2023/10/03/russia-has-betrayed-armenian-people-by-standing-aside-in-nagorno-karabakh-charles-michel)

Lawsuit Says New Hampshire Governor's Family May Profit Off Humanitarian Crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh: The Daily Beast

>A Sununu-linked mining company prepares to exploit resources in a disputed region as ethnic Armenians flee, according to legal docs and other public records.

...

>John Sununu, the former New Hampshire governor and ex-White House chief-of-staff—held stakes and positions in a U.K.-based firm that secured mining rights within the province from Baku, rights only an Azerbaijani reconquest could guarantee. Public records, news reports, and corporate filings support many of the suit’s factual assertions.

...

>[Sununu's] office also would not pledge that the governor would forfeit any potential returns from the company’s prospective business in Nagorno-Karabakh, so as not to profit from Azerbaijan’s alleged ethnic cleansing

...

>The lawsuit highlights several subsequent events: on March 31 [of 2016] Azeri President Ilham Aliyev met with John Sununu [in Washington D.C.], and the next day, Azeri forces attacked Nagorno-Karabakh, an advance the lawsuit suggests aimed at Demirli [town where NK Armenians operated a processing plant]. After four days of fighting, Aliyev’s forces withdrew.

>But Azerbaijan grabbed back some of the territory four and half years later [during the 2020 war], prompting Anglo Asian [Sununu-linked mining company] to applaud in a statement to stockholders what it described as the “liberation” of one of its mining concession zones

>Almost exactly one year after the 2020 conflict began, Anglo Asian obtained initial Azerbaijani approvals to exploit two sites within the still-autonomous portions of Nagorno-Karabakh, including the Demirli installation.

>In December 2022, Azerbaijan demanded access to one of the mines as a condition for restoring Nagorno-Karabakh’s food, medicine, and fuel route from Armenia. The move came precisely one week after Anglo Asian penned missives to the U.S., U.K, United Nations, and the European Union complaining of “illegal mining” at its concession locations in the disputed region

>as of June of this year, Anglo Asian reported it was unable to access these locations, and the blockade of the corridor has persisted despite international condemnation and allegations of genocide.

>However, on Sept. 26, Anglo Asian had good news for its shareholders. [Azerbaijan launched a military aggression and invaded Nagorno-Karabakh along with the mining territory.]

[full article with additional details,](https://www.thedailybeast.com/nh-governor-chris-sununus-family-to-profit-off-azerbaijan-armenian-humanitarian-crisis-suit-says) [Sununu's scumbaggery doesn't end in Nagorno-Karabakh,](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/powerful-us-political-family-linked-copper-mining-amazon-rainforest-rcna87436)

Azerbaijan kidnaps and arrests the former presidents of Nagorno-Karabakh

Presidents Arkadiy Ghukasyan, Bako Sahakyan, Arayik Harutyunyan, and the parliament president Davit Ishkhanyan have also been arrested and taken to Baku, according to Azeri media.

[article,](https://hetq.am/hy/article/160860) [article,](https://factor.am/696724.html)

Armenian parliament ratifies the Rome Statute || How it unfolded || What was the opposition saying shortly after the coup in Nagorno-Karabakh? || International response

A heated conversation ensued between the ruling and pro-Russian opposition MPs. The opposition accused the Pashinyan administration of surrendering Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijan and of launching an "unconstitutional" process to ratify the Rome Statute [against Russia's wishes]. A ruling party MP, in turn, accused the opposition of being Russia's agents:

Ruling MP: Do you think we have forgotten your euphoria when you carried out a coup and hijacked power in Nagorno-Karabakh, and how you announced that thanks to the coup, Nagorno-Karabakh and Russia were strong allies now? Where is your "ally" now?

Wasn't that you who announced that "patriots have finally taken control of Nagorno-Karabakh"? Which patriots? The ones that signed the dissolution of Nagorno-Karabakh? The history repeats. Every capitulation in our modern history was signed by the ARF. The Nov. 9 statement was far from being a capitulation. But you went and signed the real one.

Oppo MP (from her seat): Who are YOU? You are the enemy of Armenia!

Ruling MP: Still not an agent of a foreign state, tho...

'[oppositoon benches explode in boos and chants, Speaker intervenes to establish order but the shouting continues]'

Ruling MP: For 3 years you've knocked on every possible door, looking for help to hijack power in Armenia. You couldn't do it here, but you succeeded in Nagorno-Karabakh accompanied by loud cheers and congratulations. We saw the outcome a week later.

Oppo MP: You abandoned Nagorno-Karabakh and didn't provide support during the September 19 attack.

Ruling MP: I'm going to play an episode from [Robert Kocharyan's] TV5 media outlet's coverage of the coup in Nagorno-Karabakh. [VIDEO: TV5 anchor berates the ousted Nagorno-Karabakh president Arayik and says the new regime won't follow Pashinyan's plan; opposition cheers the coup and believes that Nagorno-Karabakh has finally rediscovered its true identity by becoming a factor whose opinion will need to be taken into account; a ranking opposition MP says Pashinyan was lying about Nagorno-Karabakh not having true allies on the international arena and that Russia is the true ally of Nagorno-Karabakh; opposition MP notes that only Russia has not condemned the coup in Nagorno-Karabakh; opposition announes that "patriots" have taken over Nagorno-Karabakh and that now it's time to do the same in Armenia. The ruling MP stops the video.] //

... approved

The government presented the Rome Statute for ratification. The opposition voted against (22), the ruling party voted in favor (60).

The opposition party ARF is concerned that the Statute could prevent Armenia from forcefully liberating Nagorno-Karabakh in the future because it would target specific Armenian military commanders and generals if there was an attempt.

... foreign reaction

KOSACHEV, Russian Senator: Unfortunately, Armenia, after all, has taken this clearly unfriendly step towards Russia. There were no forces in the Armenian parliament that would have been able to stop the process of legal enslavement of this country by the Hague. // *[Russia believes the ratification is a step against Vladimir Putin, who has a warrant for his arrest for kidnapping and "re-educating" Ukrainian children. Armenia said it will use loopholes in order not to arrest Putin, but that hasn't been enough for Kremlin mouthpieces who have adopted a hostile stance towards Armenia in order to appease Russia's allies Turkey and Azerbaijan.]*

VOROBYOV, Russian deputy speaker: The decision of the Armenian parliamentarians destroys the constructive and reliable relations that were formed within the framework of the Russian-Armenian inter-parliamentary commission. But I am confident that no force will be able to destroy the age-old friendship of the Russian and Armenian peoples. //

FRANCE: We welcome Armenia's decision to ratify the Rome Statute and become a state party to the International Criminal Court. Fighting impunity for crimes is a condition for peace and stability.

• [speeches](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJF9MA2_d5s?t=541)
• [article,](https://hetq.am/hy/article/160830)
• [article,](https://www.civilnet.am/news/753034/աժ-ն-վավերացրեց-հռոմի-ստատուտը՝-60-կողմ-22-դեմ-ձայներով/)
• [video,](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzJrDecVhkw?t=266)
• [article,](https://arka.am/en/news/politics/ratification_of_rome_statute_means_nothing_but_loss_of_legal_sovereignty_kosachev/)
• [article,](https://factor.am/696524.html)
• [article,](https://arka.am/en/news/politics/french_foreign_minister_welcomes_armenia_s_decision_to_ratify_rome_statute_of_icc/)
• [video,](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AW2vJoGc1YE?t=50)

France confirms plans to provide military support to Armenia

French FM Catherine Colonna visited Armenia on Tuesday and met FM Mirzoyan and PM Pashinyan. The latter presented the situation around the ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh.

France and Armenia have already reached an agreement on military cooperation. There are also discussions around additional cooperation. FM Colonna won't disclose details in order not to provoke Azerbaijan.

France did not demand for Armenia to officially leave CSTO as a prerequisite.

[video,](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfX72KUepFY) [video,](https://hetq.am/hy/article/160874)

Russian customs agents are throttling the import of Armenian cognac

The troubles began in March-April after Russian customs agents allegedly discovered fake bottles. Only products from specific companies were being pulled over for inspection at the time.

The import issues have since intensified. Now they block products by every exporter and force them to go through lengthy checks. An inspection can last up to a month.

Armenia's representative at the Upper Lars border checkpoint does not believe politics is in play. He does not rule out actual issues with counterfeit products.

[article,](https://www.civilnet.am/news/752935/հայաստանից-ռդ-արտահանվող-կոնյակի-նկատմամբ-հսկողություն-է-իրականացվում-շուրջ-60-բեռնատար-սպասում-է-վերին-լարսում/)

an unknown army general has expressed willingness to join the pro-Russian opposition that wants to remove Pashinyan with force: opposition MP

Opposition leader Vazgen Manukyan [had earlier](https://www.reddit.com/r/armenia/comments/16wfz9g/nagornokarabakh_depopulation_war_crimes/) urged the army to organize a coup against Pashinyan. A few days later, his fellow opposition MP Ruben Hakobyan gave an interview:

REPORTER: You [opposition forces] told the population that Pashinyan surrendered Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijan. Thousands of people listened to you and gathered in the Republic Square. But within just two days, people began to whistle your speeches. It's all on video. People were chanting *"enough with your speeches, just tell us what to do"*. Your rallies died down 2-3 days later. Don't you think your [low rating and weakness] is responsible for Pashinyan remaining in power?

HAKOBYAN: The National Committee had adopted the strategy of impeaching Pashinyan. *[The National Committee is basically a big-brain brother of "Vernatun" created by pro-Russian forces to manage the country after Pashinyan. It's the continuation of their failed 2021 strategy, which in turn was a copycat of a successful strategy executed during the 1st Karabakh war.]* The problem is, if you adopt impeachment as the strategy, especially if it's going to take place as early as October 4 [before the Granada meeting], you are legally required to disclose the name of your candidate for PM.

A few days ago, a ranking army official met me at night and asked me to give the name of our candidate for PM so they could approach and speak with the candidate. People want to know who the proposed replacement is.

REPORTER: Does the opposition even know who its candidate is going to be?

HAKOBYAN: Look. It's not necessary to politically rape Yerevan [by closing streets]. What we needed was to organize one massive nationwide rally near the Parliament building on October 4th and *force* the ruling party to impeach Pashinyan. We should have adopted Pashinyan's own strategy when he took over the parliament with only 7 MPs. What we see today is not the government defeating the opposition, but the opposition defeating itself.

[video,](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrRybSzyFMU)

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Link to original report and comments: https://www.reddit.com/r/armenia/comments/16z37f6/traitors_vs_agents_how_the_parliament_ratified/