ARMENIAN NEWS: BREAKING NEWS 09.05.2018

The New Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, on Wednesday visited on the Artsakh Defense Army Day and the 26th anniversary of the liberation of Shushi town.

Pashinyan and Artsakh President Bako Sahakyan attended a commemoration ceremony in capital city Stepanakert and laid flowers to the monument to the Armenian soldiers who fell in the Great Patriotic War, during World War II, and in the Karabakh War.

Subsequently, Pashinyan and Sahakyan headed to Shushi.

During his meeting with Sahakyan, Pashinyan said he is ready to conduct negotiations with Azerbaijani president within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group. Pashinyan stressed, however, that the current format of negotiations along the lines of the OSCE Minsk Group cannot be considered full as long as Artsakh does not participate in it.

Armenian political elite visited Victory Park on the Victory and Peace Day.

Since early morning, the officials laid wreaths in front of the Eternal Flame of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Victory Park in capital city Yerevan.

Vigen Sargsyan will continue to serve as Armenian Defense Minister until the appointment of a new head of the department.

“It is unacceptable to dismiss the Minister of Defense until a new minister is appointed under the current circumstances,” Vigen Sargsyan told reporters.

Vigen Sargsyan ruled out his participation in the work of a new Armenian government.

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated newly elected Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan during a phone conversation on Tuesday.

They expressed mutual desire to continue further strengthening of friendly relations and expressed readiness for partnership in multilateral and integration associations, primarily in the Eurasian Economic Union and the Collective Security Treaty Organization.

Russian ambassador to Armenia Ivan Volynkin said.

The United States looks forward to working closely with the new government and with the people of Armenia, State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said in a statement.

“We look forward to working closely with the new government and with the people of Armenia on the many areas of shared interest between our countries, including increasing trade, working in support of democracy and rule of law, and safeguarding regional and global security,” the statement reads.

US President Donald Trump declared on Tuesday that he was pulling out of the Iran nuclear deal and re-imposing sanctions against Iran.

Trump labeled the agreement as “a horrible, one-sided deal” which couldn't protect the national interests of America.

Iranian leader Hassan Rouhani slammed Trump’s decision saying they will consult with the European countries, Russia and China within the next weeks and will remain in the agreement, if Iran's national interests are secured.

The European countries said they regret the decision.

George Deukmejian, former governor of California, died at the age of 89.

The son of Armenian immigrants, Deukmejian, who was elected governor in 1982 and 1986, died at his home in Long Beach.

The first semi-final of Eurovision 2018 took place in Lisbon on Tuesday.

Armenia’s Sevak Khanagyan did not manage to make it to the final of the Eurovision 2018 song contest.