First Euronest assembly starts without BelarusMay 3, 2011 - 17:24 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The inaugural meeting of the European Parliament's Eastern Partnership, or Euronest, has taken place in Brussels. Euronest's role is to provide a parliamentary forum to the Eastern Partnership, part of the EU's Neighborhood Policy. Legislators from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine attended the meeting. The European Union has decided to temporarily suspend Belarus from Euronest as part of the sanctions on President Alyaksandr Lukashenka's regime following the violent crackdown against protesters after December's disputed presidential election. According to meeting results, Kristian Vigenin, a Bulgarian member of the European Parliament, will co-preside over Euronest together with the head of the Ukrainian delegation, Borys Tarasyuk. European Parliament President Jerzy Buzek attended the event, RFE/RL reported. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | IDBank, Dalma team up for Caucasian Deer Reintroduction Program IDBank has joined Dalma Garden Mall’s Green Challenge to support the Caucasian red deer reintroduction project. Through Ucom’s support the 12th Sunchild Festival concludes On May 24-28, with the support of Ucom, the 12th international environmental festival Sunchild took place in Yerevan. U.S., Turkey emphasize importance of Armenia-Azerbaijan peace deal Jake Sullivan and Akif Cagatay Kilic have discussed the normalization process between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Armenia coach expects good football in Slovenia friendly The Armenian national team has left for Ljubljana a friendly match against Slovenia on June 4. |