<p>Armenian President&nbsp;Armen Sarkissian on Friday appointed Vagharshak Harutyunyan as the&nbsp;new defence minister for the country post criticism&nbsp;over a ceasefire that secured advances for Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh following six weeks of fighting.</p>

<p>Vagharshak Harutyunyan has previously served as&nbsp;the&nbsp;defence minister of Armenia&nbsp;from 1999 to 2000. He has replaced&nbsp;Davit Tonoyan&nbsp;who held the job&nbsp;since May 2018.</p>

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/erdogan-macron-spat-over-karabakh-role-344287/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

<p>Nagorno-Karabakh lies within Azerbaijan but has been under the control of ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenia since a separatist war there ended in 1994. That war left not only Nagorno-Karabakh itself but substantial surrounding territory in Armenian hands.</p>

<p>A huge number of demonstrators have requested Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan quit over the truce that finished the heaviest battling in a long time in Nagorno-Karabakh, an area that is inside Azerbaijan however chiefly populated by ethnic Armenians.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Also see:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/armenia-and-azerbaijan-a-decades-long-bloody-rivalry-330840">Armenia and Azerbaijan: A decades-long bloody rivalry</a></strong></p>

<p>Under the Russia-facilitated bargain, Nagorno-Karabakh's ethnic Armenian pioneers are giving over areas of an area which they had controlled for quite a long time yet had been kept on being globally perceived as a component of Azerbaijan.&nbsp;</p>

<p>During the ongoing battling, Azeri powers recovered huge pieces of an area that had been lost in a battle during the 1990s.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Azerbaijan's protection service said its powers had entered the Agdam locale, a region outside Nagorno-Karabakh that Armenian powers needed to surrender under the truce bargain.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Pashinyan, who has dismissed calls to leave, divulged a six-month activity plan on Wednesday which he said was intended to guarantee Armenia's solidness.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Before Tonoyan's excusal was declared, an underlying report by Armenian paper Aravot had said he had offered his acquiescence.</p>


Armenian President Armen Sarkissian on Friday appointed Vagharshak Harutyunyan as the new defence minister for the country post criticism over a ceasefire that secured advances for Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh following six weeks of fighting.

Armenian President Armen Sarkissian on Friday appointed Vagharshak Harutyunyan as the new defence minister for the country post criticism over a ceasefire that secured advances for Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh following six weeks of fighting. Vagharshak Harutyunyan has previously served as the defence minister of Armenia from 1999 to 2000. He has replaced Davit Tonoyan who held the job since May 2018. Nagorno-Karabakh lies within Azerbaijan but has been under the control of ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenia since a separatist war there ended in 1994. That war left not only Nagorno-Karabakh itself but substantial surrounding territory in Armenian hands. A huge number of demonstrators have requested Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan quit over the truce that finished the heaviest battling in a long time in Nagorno-Karabakh, an area that is inside Azerbaijan however chiefly populated by ethnic Armenians. Also see: Armenia and Azerbaijan: A decades-long bloody rivalry Under the Russia-facilitated bargain, Nagorno-Karabakh's ethnic Armenian pioneers are giving over areas of an area which they had controlled for quite a long time yet had been kept on being globally perceived as a component of Azerbaijan. During the ongoing battling, Azeri powers recovered huge pieces of an area that had been lost in a battle during the 1990s. Azerbaijan's protection service said its powers had entered the Agdam locale, a region outside Nagorno-Karabakh that Armenian powers needed to surrender under the truce bargain. Pashinyan, who has dismissed calls to leave, divulged a six-month activity plan on Wednesday which he said was intended to guarantee Armenia's solidness. Before Tonoyan's excusal was declared, an underlying report by Armenian paper Aravot had said he had offered his acquiescence.

Vagharshak Harutyunyan appointed as Armenia's new defence minister

Armenian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said that there will be no bilateral talks or meetings between Armenia & Azerbaijan during the Geneva talks on (Friday) October 30, 2020.

Armenia-Azerbaijan Conflict: No bilateral talks between diplomats during Geneva

<p>An attempt by the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) to boast about its expansion backfired after it prompted an online war.</p>

<p>The Brussels-based organisation had posted a tweet on social networking site Twitter comprising the flags of its original members in 1949.</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">How it started How it's going<br />
<br />
🇧🇪🇨🇦🇩🇰🇫🇷🇮🇸 🇦🇱🇧🇪🇧🇬🇨🇦🇭🇷<br />
🇮🇹🇱🇺🇳🇱🇳🇴🇵🇹 🇨🇿🇩🇰🇪🇪🇫🇷🇩🇪<br />
🇬🇧🇺🇸 🇬🇷🇭🇺🇮🇸🇮🇹🇱🇻<br />
🇱🇹🇱🇺🇲🇪🇳🇱🇲🇰<br />
🇳🇴🇵🇱🇵🇹🇷🇴🇸🇰<br />
🇸🇮🇪🇸🇹🇷🇬🇧🇺🇸<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeAreNATO?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeAreNATO</a></p>
— NATO (@NATO) <a href="https://twitter.com/NATO/status/1315611227138199555?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2020</a></blockquote>
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<p>However, the ''how it started vs how it's going'' meme received an unexpected response and&nbsp;triggered a virtual bloodbath.</p>

<p>The replies that ensued the tweet ranged from calls to kick out Turkey and hopes for expansion in Ukraine, Georgia and the Balkans to another warfront between Armenia and Azerbaijan.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Quite a succes, having Turkey on board...</p>
— Publius031 #VerenigdRechts (@Publius0311) <a href="https://twitter.com/Publius0311/status/1315611460492562433?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2020</a></blockquote>
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<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">And how it should be... <a href="https://t.co/2qzvbY38KM">pic.twitter.com/2qzvbY38KM</a></p>
— Ghanem Nuseibeh (@gnuseibeh) <a href="https://twitter.com/gnuseibeh/status/1315632227808669697?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
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<p>Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's military aggression has put the country at odds with&nbsp;NATO and has become its&nbsp;biggest liability.</p>

<p><strong>Also read| <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/fall-of-democracy-turkeys-erdogan-openly-challenging-natos-values-333294">Fall of democracy: Turkey's Erdogan openly challenging NATO's values</a></strong></p>

<p>NATO, which was created in&nbsp;1949, has 30 members. In the aftermath of the second world war, the purpose was to secure peace in Europe, especially against the Soviet Union. Then the Soviet Union fell and the relevance of NATO came into question.</p>

<p>Turkey joined the organisation in 1952 because there was a synergy of interests. Turkey didn't want to fall under the Soviet influence and its military made key contributions in the fight.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/turkey-under-erdogan-caught-between-democracy-and-dictatorship-333285"><strong>Also read|&nbsp;Turkey under Erdogan: Caught between democracy and dictatorship</strong></a></p>

<p>However, that is no longer the case. Today, Erdogan is on a collision course with the NATO. It is fighting the allies of NATO itself and that has been visible in Turkey's key activities in the past one year.</p>

<p>In January, Turkey violated a United Nations arms embrago in Libya. Turkish warships escorted a vessel suspected of smuggling weapons into Libya. By June, Turkey was locked in a direct face-off against Greece and France.</p>

<p>Now, Turkey is fueling another conflict&nbsp;in Nagorno-Karabakh.&nbsp;Turkey is arming Azerbaijan against Armenia.</p>

<p>NATO called for a ceasefire, but Turkey refuses to pay heed to such calls.</p>


An attempt by the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) to boast about its expansion backfired after it prompted an online war. The Brussels-based organisation had posted a tweet on social networking site Twitter comprising the flags of its original members in 1949.

An attempt by the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) to boast about its expansion backfired after it prompted an online war. The Brussels-based organisation had posted a tweet on social networking site Twitter comprising the flags of its original members in 1949. How it started How it's going 🇧🇪🇨🇦🇩🇰🇫🇷🇮🇸 🇦🇱🇧🇪🇧🇬🇨🇦🇭🇷 🇮🇹🇱🇺🇳🇱🇳🇴🇵🇹 🇨🇿🇩🇰🇪🇪🇫🇷🇩🇪 🇬🇧🇺🇸 🇬🇷🇭🇺🇮🇸🇮🇹🇱🇻 🇱🇹🇱🇺🇲🇪🇳🇱🇲🇰 🇳🇴🇵🇱🇵🇹🇷🇴🇸🇰 🇸🇮🇪🇸🇹🇷🇬🇧🇺🇸#WeAreNATO — NATO (@NATO) October 12, 2020 × However, the ''how it started vs how it's going'' meme received an unexpected response and triggered a virtual bloodbath. The replies that ensued the tweet ranged from calls to kick out Turkey and hopes for expansion in Ukraine, Georgia and the Balkans to another warfront between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Quite a succes, having Turkey on board... — Publius031 #VerenigdRechts (@Publius0311) October 12, 2020 × And how it should be... pic.twitter.com/2qzvbY38KM — Ghanem Nuseibeh (@gnuseibeh) October 12, 2020 × Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's military aggression has put the country at odds with NATO and has become its biggest liability. Also read| Fall of democracy: Turkey's Erdogan openly challenging NATO's values NATO, which was created in 1949, has 30 members. In the aftermath of the second world war, the purpose was to secure peace in Europe, especially against the Soviet Union. Then the Soviet Union fell and the relevance of NATO came into question. Turkey joined the organisation in 1952 because there was a synergy of interests. Turkey didn't want to fall under the Soviet influence and its military made key contributions in the fight. Also read| Turkey under Erdogan: Caught between democracy and dictatorship However, that is no longer the case. Today, Erdogan is on a collision course with the NATO. It is fighting the allies of NATO itself and that has been visible in Turkey's key activities in the past one year. In January, Turkey violated a United Nations arms embrago in Libya. Turkish warships escorted a vessel suspected of smuggling weapons into Libya. By June, Turkey was locked in a direct face-off against Greece and France. Now, Turkey is fueling another conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh. Turkey is arming Azerbaijan against Armenia. NATO called for a ceasefire, but Turkey refuses to pay heed to such calls.

NATO's expansionism tweet triggers online war

Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has said that he was sure that Russia would come to the country's defence if necessary amid conflict with Azerbaijan.

WION Dispatch: Fighting continues in Nagorno-Karabakh