Azerbaijan's defense industry cooperation with Russia has reached $4 billion and keeps growing, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev told reporters after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin who was on a one-day working visit to Baku, Tuesday. He said that Moscow and Baku planned to continue military and technical collaboration.

"Russia has been actively contributing to the soonest settlement of the conflict, which is only possible through political means," said Russian President Vladimir Putin in the course of his meeting with Azerbnaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Baku overnight. Russian President Vladimir Putin paid a one-day working visit to Baku.

Representatives of the Yerevan delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) met with parents of captive Hakob Injighulyan.

 At present Moscow is in the stage of making choice of the geo-political preferences in the South Caucasus, Russian political expert, Aleksey Vlasov, told Arminfo correspondent when replying to the question if new arrangements on Karabakh will be made between Moscow and Baku during Putin's visit to Azerbaijan.  

Azerbaijan has always demonstrated balance in its relations with Russia as well as the West. And if after Vladimir Putin's visit  to Baku this balance is broken, in that case, rapprochement of Azerbaijan with Russia may create problems with the West in future, Armenian political expert, Levon Shirinyan, said at today's press-conference. 

Armenia's Education Minister, Armen Ashotyan, told journalists today that hiking of the tuition fee by the universities of Armenia was their local decision.

The relatives of an Armenian soldier Hakop Ijigulyan, who lost his way and found himself in Azerbaijan, are holding an action in front of the ICRC Armenian Office building demanding to give them information about Ijigulyan's destiny. 

Knowing that the Eurasian Union has become a pet project for Vladimir Putin, Ilham Aliyev will try to get as much preferences as he can from the Baku meeting with the Russian president in the matter of the Karabakh settlement, political expert, Agasi Enokyan, said at today's press-conference. 

 It is still early to speak about Russia's transition to the new strategy in the South Caucasus. If the situation is more or less clear regarding Georgia, at least for a short period of time, there is still no full clarity regarding Armenia and Azerbaijan, executive director of the political centre "North-South" (Moscow), Aleksey Vlasov, told Arminfo correspondent when replying to the question if President Putin's visit to Azerbaijan will mean the beginning of the new strategy of Moscow regarding Azerbaijan and  the South Caucasus region in general. 

An Armenian serviceman, Hakop Ijigylyan, that lost his way and fell prisoner to the Azerbaijani party, had an interview with ANS TV channel. 

At the upcoming Eastern Partnership Summit in Vilnius, Armenia will apparently initial the Association Agreement with the EU, including on the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA). Political scientists around the world following the situation around Eastern Europe have no doubts that the EU introduced the idea of Eastern Partnership at the suggestion of Poland amid Russia’s integration ambitions in the territories of the post-Soviet area that were more or less controlled by it.  Possessor of one/third of the world’s energy resources Russia is well aware that its ‘unification mission’ of a world power should be restored, otherwise it may face decentralization of power. What will be Armenia’s position on these processes? ArmInfo correspondent asked Hrant Bagratyan, oppositionist MP, former prime minister of Armenia, to share his views on the issue.

 The Azerbaijani party must refrain from sadistic treatment of the Armenian soldier Gevorg Injigulyan, who lost his way and found himself in the area under control of the enemy, military expert David Jamalyan told media, Tuesday.

 Re-examination will be held within the frames of the lawsuit filed on Avetik Budaghyan's death and Artak Budaghyan's injuring near ex-governor of Syunik region, Suren Khachatryan's (Litska) house, the lawyer of the Budaghyans' family, Hayk Alumyan, told Arminfo correspondent.   

 Armenians have been discriminated in Russia on a massive scale, Zhamank daily reported referring to its own sources. 

 Today, the maximum buying rates at commercial banks of Yerevan were 406,5 drams for 1 dollar, 540drams for 1 EUR and 12,3 drams for 1 Russian ruble. The minimum selling rates stood at 407,5 drams for 1 dollar, 542 drams for 1 EUR and 12,4 drams for 1 Russian ruble .                 

 Yerevan 7th International Music Festival dedicated to the great Armenian composer Aram Khachaturian's 110th Anniversary will be held Yerevan 11 September - 25 October.

One of the activists holding a picket in front of the Yerevan Mayor's Office and protesting because of hiking public transport fare, Mihran Melkonyan, was detained. 

 Mr Sharmazanov, despite the predicted summer calmness, the current summer was rather hot not only in the context of weather, but also because of tension in the public and political field. The last decision of the Yerevan mayor to hike the public transport fare aroused a spontaneous wave of protests. Many analysts predict that it is simply impossible to avoid social revolt in the country in autumn, as at that period of time the population will sharply feel hiking of the tuition fee and increase in the gas and electricity tariffs. Will you please comment on the situation?

Tbilisi. Tasked by the U.S. Department of State, the U.S.-based Densus Group analyzed and prepared a report on the actions of the Georgian MoI units during the dispersal of the opposition's rally in Tbilisi center, on May 26, 2011 - Georgian Free Zone NGO reported on Monday, August 12.