A collage of photographs from Global Voices reporting from 2017. Created by L. Finch.

Another year, another flood of retrospectives announcing that our last trip around the Sun was especially bad. And how could it be otherwise, with inequality, strife and catastrophes all around?

The state of affairs on Earth can indeed seem grim. Nevertheless, the human spirit is still alive, healthy and beautiful, as always.

Need proof? Global Voices offered plenty in 2017. Our community of volunteers and partner organizations told hundreds of stories from around the world about ordinary people defending their rights and growing intercultural understanding in the face of injustice, indifference or even hatred.

Therefore, at the beginning of 2018, we invite you to find solace in the following list of 40 stories. There is a lot of good in the world - and perhaps even more of it in the coming year.

1. Artists use Lego to restore buildings - and hope - in Beirut

An art team called Dispatch Beirut in the Lebanese capital, "rebuilding" ruined buildings with what it calls "little hope bricks" Lego. The artists seek to draw attention to how they say the government, in its post-Civil War recovery, chooses profit over preservation of heritage.

2. Indigenous singer breaks stereotypes at Brazil's Amazonas Theater

Juena Tikuna was the first indigenous singer to perform on stage at the famous Amazonas Theater in Manaus in the Brazilian Amazon, presenting her album Tchautchiüãne, "my village" in the Tikuna language. The work tells about the rubber fever that began at the turn of the 20th century, which was marked by the massive exploitation of local rubber trees and the inhabitants of the region.

3. Parents fight for proper education for children with disabilities in Bosnia

A group of parents in Sarajevo [eng] for adequate early childhood education for children with cognitive disabilities who face a government system poorly prepared to teach them the skills they need for independent living. If the #GdjeJeMojaSkola campaign? (“Where is my school?”) will succeed, it will be the first of its kind in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

4 Dictionary Gives Hope To A Vanishing Indigenous Nepali Language

Field studies show that Kusunda, one of several endangered languages ​​in Nepal, is only spoken well by two of the Kusunda community of 150 people. A dictionary book [eng] has recently been released with the aim of preserving a language that, by its origin, is not related to any other living language in the world.

5. Viral hashtags send love and solidarity across borders

Fragment of an image created by the artist under the pseudonym "Azúcar y Sal". The drawing is freely available from the author's Facebook page.

Hate rhetoric between the two governments has heated up since U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning entry to citizens of seven predominantly Muslim countries, including Iran. To combat the unfortunate turn of events, Iranians are solidarity across borders under the hashtag #LoveBeyondFlags (#LoveBeyondFlags).

And in Mexico, an anonymous group of teenagers hashtaged food to show support for Venezuelans fighting for democracy amid a worsening social, economic and political crisis: #ArepaElTacoEstáContigo (Arepa, tacos with you!). Arepas are from Venezuela, tacos are from Mexico.

6. "Songs of Resistance" becomes the music of the protest movement in Ethiopia

Amid ongoing protests, fueled by a growing opposition movement, the Ethiopian government has made many attempts to censor "resistance songs" that speak out against the country's crackdown. YouTube regularly attracts hundreds of thousands of views to channels that post protest photos against such songs.

7. 'Open Source' Seed Manufacturers Try to Change Global Food Production

From India to the US, worldwide, for "open source" seeds. Proponents say corporate patents on plant material are jeopardizing the food industry as the gene pool shrinks at a time when genetic diversity is needed more than ever thanks to climate change.

8. Activists create a map of smells in Kyiv

A small group of people, led by artist and designer Kate McLean, walked around Kyiv, registering the city's winter scents. Among the recorded smells are "islands of summer", "wet animal fur" and "rusty metal". McLean has been creating "smell maps" of places around the world for five years.

9 Donated New Year's Clothes Help Kurdish Families In Need

Jili Kurdi is the traditional dress worn by Kurds in honor of Navruz - the New Year, but for many Kurdish families in war-ravaged Iraq, bright fabrics are not available. To help solve the problem, activists (Kurdish clothing for all) are asking people from all over the region to donate these special robes. As a result, more than 450 families received new Kurdish clothes for the holiday.

10. An arts festival helps tsunami-ravaged Japanese city find fun

Physical reconstruction in the city of Ishinomaki in Miyagi Prefecture, which suffered extensive damage on March 11, 2011 as a result of the earthquake and tsunami, can be considered complete, but the region has not yet regained its former vigor. The goal of the Reborn Art Festival is to help residents appreciate the beautiful, the abstract, and the elusive, rather than fixate on material losses.

11. East African kanga fabrics convey a message of equal love

A Kenyan artist showed the struggle for equal love in 35 different countries at an exhibition in Nairobi of specially crafted "kanga," East African fabrics that are usually embossed with Swahili proverbs. Instead, Kavira Mwirichia used motivating rhetoric from queer community leaders in Aurica and beyond.

Kanga for South Africa, translation: "Black and white are not the colors of love - they never were." Kavira Mviricia, 2017

12. Construction workers in Peru take a stand against street harassment

In Peru, where gender-based violence is a major concern, one construction site shattered stereotypes about workers in the industry by displaying a sign: "We don't whistle at women at this site and we're against street sexual harassment."

13. Theater of good deeds, from Azerbaijan to El Salvador

In Azerbaijan, ƏSA ("staff" in Azerbaijani) - created to combat the perception of people with disabilities as dependent, incompetent and unhappy. “This is not some kind of social project or entertainment, we take it very seriously,” says its founder.

In Argentina, the Teatro x Identitad (Theatre for Identity) is on a quest to find children who went missing during the 1970s dictatorship and return them to their real families.

And in El Salvador, where an alarming number of people are victims of gang activity and police violence, two new theatrical productions focus on the story and their families.

14. Kyrgyz scientist becomes a symbol of resistance to sexism

Biochemist Asel Sartbayeva and the British University of Bath won the biotechnology category at the IChemE Global Awards just days after a well-known businessman from her native Kyrgyzstan publicly called women's leadership "crap" and equated feminism with "terrorism". Sartbayeva is leading a project that "uses silica to keep vaccines from spoiling, which reduces the need for refrigeration."

15. Mozambique's only LGBT organization wins major court case

After more than a decade of fighting to officially register as an association with Lambda, Mozambique's only organization for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people, when the Constitutional Council ruled that its status did not violate the country's constitution. Lambda chief executive Danilo da Silva said the decision opens the door to the organization's legal recognition, calling it "a victory not just for the LGBT community, but for everyone who is different and sees things differently."

16. Women pioneers open a restaurant in Quetta, Pakistan

A new restaurant in the western Pakistani city of Quetta is all-women, representing a major step of resistance in a deeply patriarchal region. The restaurant was opened by Hamida Ali Hazara, from a marginalized Hazara minority. Despite the obstacles, so far the restaurant is very popular.

A young fan poses at the 2016 Indigenous Comic-Con in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Screenshot of the video from the City Alive YouTube channel.

17. "Indigenous Comic-Con" in the USA against stereotypes about the Indian population

Held in the southwestern US state of New Mexico, vendors, artists, guests and cosplayers were in attendance celebrating indigenous pop culture so often misrepresented or not represented at all in popular culture. “There are so many stereotypes because no one fights them, no one shows that there is a lot of positive, productive and acceptable,” says organizer Dr. Lee Francis IV.

18. After 113 days in prison, Istanbul Ten human rights activists are released pending trial.

Ten human rights defenders in Istanbul have been charged with membership of a terrorist organization - a rare moment of relief in a case that monitors say is meant to intimidate human rights defenders. The Istanbul Ten were arrested at a training in information management and well-being and spent four months in prison.

19. Thai pop group pokes fun at censorship-loving junta in music video

In the video for their latest song, acclaimed pop group Tattoo Color subtly parodies the Thai junta that took over in 2014 and continues to rule the country despite promising to restore civilian rule.

20. A village in South Africa gets Internet access thanks to “homemade” telecommunications.

In South Africa, where rural areas often lack internet infrastructure, the village of Mankosi now has access to cheaper telephony and internet connectivity thanks to a community-owned, solar-powered mesh network. The goal of the project, which is part of the Association for Progressive Communications, is to create a sustainable bottom-up telecommunications model.

21. Trinidad and Tobago musicians say there's no better time to promote change

Like many other places in the world, Trinidad and Tobago is struggling with violence and social strife. One song, featuring 35 musicians and singers, called "No Greater Time" seeks to call on citizens to "together create a more peaceful, prosperous and unified Trinbagonian society." “It's not so much that we're off the right track, it's that we need more people to do something,” says producer Keron "Sheriff" Thompson. “Not only did they talk about change, but they themselves changed or were part of that change.”

22. Colombians use love letters to help former guerrillas return to society.

America's longest armed conflict ended when the Colombian government reached a peace deal with the FARC, but the problem of reintegrating former militia members has not gone away. One campaign invited young people to write love letters [eng] to former guerrillas, welcoming them to civilian life. Many former combatants respond to them.

23. A young engineer from Niger invents a device to clean polluted air

A 22-year-old man from Niger, which he says cleans the air of industrial pollution. He says he hopes one day it will help his country, where air pollution and climate change are worrisome issues. Abdou Barmini created the prototype of his purifying device using local materials that he recycled and reassembled for his own purposes.

24. Spanish neighbors unite around a goldfish named Pesesin

In the hallway of an apartment building in the Spanish city of Gijón, residents stumbled upon a goldfish aquarium, a feeding calendar, and a note asking them to take care of the establishment while the owner is away. Neighbors happily got down to business, and soon the situation was publicized on Twitter. “There is still hope in the world,” one user proclaimed in response to the story.

25. Serbian websites shut down in protest of media intimidation by tax authorities

More than 100 publications and NGOs temporarily took their websites down after an independent weekly magazine was forced to shut down. The Vranje newspaper said it has faced intimidation and other forms of pressure from the Serbian tax authorities, a tactic the authorities have used in the past to punish "recalcitrant" media.

26 Displaced Indigenous Community In Paraguay Gets Their Land Back

Many years ago, the Ava Guarani people were forced to leave their land and the river running through it due to the construction of the Itaipu hydroelectric power plant. In 2015, the community returned for the sake of their land. Since then, the authorities have continued to try to evict them, but the Guarani remain steadfast in their determination to achieve justice.

Friends! Please note: in order to correctly correct the lyrics, you must highlight at least two words

[Verse, Caste]:
This year has been full of words, but to summarize -
Were these words or something more?
They made me rejoice and lament.
Remember hockey with the Canadians, the Confederations Cup.

Spartak champion in 2017.
Many words did not remain without resonance there.
Blame actress producers for harassment.
Shocking confessions in the news feed.

Matilda sparked a debate. And a lot of attention.
It was for an interview with Dudya and Navalny's rallies.
There is nothing strange in the fact that a contender has appeared.
Catalonia aspire to the list of new countries, yeah.

Words could hurt with a funeral punch.
Dizaster Versus Oxy Versus Purulent.
McGregor promised to hit, but Mayweather hit.
Words are not just words if they have a lot of weight.
These are words of support for those who are under arrest.
It's condolences, but it's useless...

There were terrible queries in the search engine.
What happened, with whom?
The words were put into a stupor, well, just like in Moscow.
The wind knocks down trees on cars and people.

Words gave rise to disputes, views on things are different.
Revolution 100 years - mourning or holiday.
Everyone was perplexed by the words and their meanings.
Bitcoin mining, blockchain implementation.

Words gave rise to curiosity, everyone asked again.
Hearing suddenly about the completion of the Cassini mission.
Have you seen a lunar eclipse? Well, not completely.
I watched the Game of Thrones and the Time of the First - sorry?

The words smiled, there was a lot of banter.
Fabulous Bali, Malikov became a blogger.
In the cinemas of Lalaland, on YouTube Leningrad.
Hey, four-legged friend. It's fiasco, brother.

We hummed Despacito and shape of you.
Can you not sing now? Thanks, I'll sleep on my own.
We sang Yacht, sail and Yalta, August.
Everyone fell in love at the Youth Festival.

The word will change the world, the word is not a sparrow.
Make our planet great again.
Thanks to dozens of words, we remember this year.
People were looking for them and ice was melting between them.

Been looking for a whole year!

2017-12-13T00:00:00

About the song Kasta - Year in search (Google - Year in Search 2017)

• How will you remember the year 2017? Some watched the draw of the World Cup with bated breath, others watched rap battles, mined bitcoins or spun spinners. Google presents the annual project "Year in search"! It contains the fastest growing queries of Russian users in 2017. All this is not just words. They surprised, inspired, laughed, hurt and made us better. They once again inspired us to make a video, and the Kasta group to write a soundtrack for it!

Additional Information

Lyrics of the song Kasta - Year in search (Google - Year in Search 2017).
Official release date: December 13, 2017.

The outgoing year 2015 was full of important events for Russia both in domestic and foreign policy.

The positive image of Russia in the world was formed by the Parade of the 70th Anniversary of the Victory, the BRICS Inter-Parliamentary Forum, the General Assembly of the United Nations, the sports triumphs of the Russian team, the strengthening of the positions of Russia and the Head of State in various domestic and international rankings.

This year was also full of terrible incidents in the world - the aggravation of the military situation in the Middle East, terrorist attacks around the world, the crash as a result of a terrorist attack of the Russian passenger Airbus A231 airliner, where 224 people died, the Russian Su aircraft shot down in Syria by the Turkish air force. -24.

The editors of mger2020.ru sum up the results of the outgoing 2015 and provide an overview of key events in the political life of the country.

Russia has risen eight points in the Global Competitiveness Index. And Russian leader Vladimir Putin has been named one of the world's top 10 most-approved politicians and topped the top 100 most powerful people by Time readers, as well as becoming the most powerful person in the world by Forbes magazine. In Russia, in October, Vladimir Putin's rating reached a historic high of 89.9%. This month, VTsIOM presented new research data, according to which 74% of Russians named Vladimir Putin the politician of the year. The vast majority of citizens of the Russian Federation named the Head of State "man of the year in politics" in a poll by the Public Opinion Foundation.

In September, Vladimir Putin addressed the UN General Assembly. One of the main theses of his speech was clear and uniform criteria for international law: “We are all different, and this should be treated with respect. No one is obliged to adapt to one model of development, recognized by someone once and for all as the only correct one.”

In his Address to the Federal Assembly, Vladimir Putin summed up the first results of 2015: “This year we went through trials together that only a mature, united nation, a truly sovereign and strong state, can do. Russia has proven in practice that it is capable of protecting its compatriots and defending truth and justice with honor.”

70th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War

This year Russia celebrated 70 years since the Victory of the Soviet people over Nazi Germany and the end of the Great Patriotic War. One of the main events of the anniversary throughout the country was a unique commemorative action - the procession of the "Immortal Regiment". Hundreds of thousands of Russians in Russia, Norway, Germany, South Korea, America and other countries carried portraits of their veteran relatives along the main streets of their cities. In Moscow, about half a million people came to Red Square along with Vladimir Putin.

Sports achievements of Russia

The Russian team continues to win first places in sports competitions in 2015: at the International Army Games "ArMI-2015", the World Military Games in South Korea and the European Games in Baku. In 2015, Kazan hosted international competitions among 190 countries in water sports: our team took third place in the team standings.

In September, the largest municipal election campaign in recent years took place in the Russian regions. September 13 were elected: 21 governors, 11 regional parliaments and city councils in 25 regional capitals. Vladimir Putin noted that the elections were held in an open and competitive environment.

Vladimir Putin's speech at the UN General Assembly

The 70th anniversary was celebrated by the United Nations, established after the end of World War II. The leaders of 50 countries met in San Francisco at the United Nations Conference and adopted the charter of an international union to restore the ideals, dignity and rights of mankind after two world wars.

Speaking at the General Assembly, the President of Russia noted the universality of the UN: « This is good will, contempt for intrigue and cunning, a spirit of cooperation. Today these words sound like parting words to all of us. Russia believes in the enormous potential of the UN, which should help to avoid a new global confrontation and move towards a strategy of cooperation. Together with other countries, we will consistently work to strengthen the central coordinating role of the UN.”

Creation of the Aerospace Forces of the Russian Federation

This year, a new type of troops appeared in Russia - the Aerospace Forces, which were merged with the Air Force. The Aerospace Forces guards outer space, manages aviation alert forces, air and missile defense, military spacecraft and a missile attack warning system.

Trends in Europe

In the outgoing year, the authorities of Western countries failed to convince their citizens of the correctness of their policy. For example, dozens of Western stars express their desire to obtain a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation, to take part in the Russian anti-alcohol campaign. European farmers oppose Russian sanctions, publish unusual photo books about the Soviet era, parliamentarians visit Crimea, take part in the friendship run. In addition, Western journalists wrote positive reviews about Vladimir Putin's speech at the UN General Assembly.

But some in the West are negative towards Russia. In addition to introducing economic restrictions, these countries openly infringe on the rights of Russian journalists to freedom of speech and the search for information. In July, Facebook deleted the account of Dmitry Kiselyov, editor-in-chief of the Rossiya Segodnya news agency, and Estonia denied entry to the country for correspondent Marina Perekrestova.

Moreover, the European politicians themselves got into comical situations during the year. Latvia promised to provide the country with toilet paper. The Czech Republic fired the leadership of the security service because of the underwear incident. Polish officials themselves resigned because of the "cassette scandal". Denmark shocked more than once: a journalist killed a rabbit on live radio, and the zoo staff dissected the dead lion in front of the children. The President of Lithuania refused to answer the uncoordinated questions of journalists, while in Poland the president's guards seal the mouth of a journalist for an uncoordinated question with adhesive tape. And the NATO ministers sang in chorus the provocative song "We are the world".

The British Prime Minister did not disappear from the media headlines. Some of the biggest scandals that David Cameron got into were related to both his direct duties and the past. In March, he began a Cold War-inspired revival of the program. In June, David Cameron delivered an ultimatum to ministers: they would be forced to leave the cabinet if they were in favor of the UK leaving the EU. Bigger Scandals: A discussion with the leader of the British Labor Party of a familiar prostitute and a book by Michael Ashcroft that mentions Cameron's gay student days.

Migration Crisis in Europe

This year, European countries are facing a severe migrant crisis - the largest since the Second World War. Over the past ten months, Western countries have been forced to become a haven for more than a million migrants from the Middle East and North Africa. The EU countries have a negative attitude towards this phenomenon and restrict the flow of foreigners by various measures: they fence the borders with barbed wire and distribute quotas according to the number of refugees received. The citizens themselves are outraged by the policy of their authorities, which allowed the dominance of refugees.

Terror attacks in Paris

New Year's holidays at the beginning of 2015 in Paris were overshadowed by the tragic events in the editorial office of the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and the brutal murder of 12 editorial staff. Responsibility for the attack was taken by Al-Qaeda and Daesh (banned in the Russian Federation). The two main suspects were killed two days later in a special operation.

Friday, November 13, was really black for the French. In Paris and its suburbs, several of the largest terrorist attacks in the history of France took place at once: near the Stade de France stadium, in the Bataclan concert hall and several cafes and restaurants. At the hands of radical Islamists, 130 people were killed, 350 were injured.

Terrorist attack in Egypt

On the last day of October, the Russian passenger airliner Airbus A231, en route from Sharm el-Sheikh to St. Petersburg, crashed a hundred kilometers from El Arish (Egypt). The crash killed 224 people. Later, the head of the Russian FSB, Alexander Bortnikov, stated that traces of a foreign-made explosive were found in the wreckage of the aircraft.

The attack on a civilian plane shocked Russia, many countries expressed their solidarity by bringing flowers to the Russian embassies. And only the French magazine Charlie Hebdo published cartoons in which the editors mock the tragedy that claimed the lives of more than 224 Russians.

Russian military operations in Syria

The fight against terrorism, in particular against the banned terrorist group DAISH, has become one of the key events in Russia's foreign policy. Our country joined the military operations on September 30 at the request of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in order to support government forces. In three months, the Russian military destroyed more than 2,000 terrorist offices, warehouses and training grounds.

Crisis in Russian-Turkish relations

At the end of November, the Russian Su-24 aircraft, which was conducting operations against ISIS (the organization is banned in the Russian Federation), was shot down by the Turkish army. According to Vladimir Putin, the crash of the fighter jet was a blow in the back delivered by accomplices of the terrorists. The military conflict led to the deterioration of Russian-Turkish relations. Thus, on November 28, the President of Russia signed a decree on the application of economic sanctions against Turkey. According to experts, now the republic's economy will lose up to $20 billion annually.

The other day, Turkish government deputy Numan Kurtulmus cited official data on the number of sorties of Russian aircraft in Syria, RIA Novosti writes. According to Russian politicians, this statement is direct evidence that on November 24, the Turkish military was aware of the time and location of the military operation of the Russian bomber.

Ukraine never integrated

The information agenda was regularly set by Ukrainian politicians, who this year did not give up their attempts to integrate into the European Union, despite the opinion of Ukrainians who are sure that the country is moving in the wrong direction. The most media was the new governor of the Odessa region Mikhail Saakashvili. Georgia stripped him of his citizenship this year. During training of the Ukrainian police, Saakashvili laughs in 2015 turned around the National Security Agency: WikiLeaks and the media exposed the NSA in spying on Germany, France, Japan, etc.

The disappointing results of the “inactivity” of the opposition

This year, the leaders of the so-called "liberal public" have demonstrated a lack of real activity and an unwillingness to comply with Russian law. For example, the leader of the Krasnoyarsk branch of Navalny's party was arrested for drunk driving. Traffic police officers arrested Oleg Bezrukikh for ten days. The Anti-Corruption Foundation established by Navalny was suspected of embezzling donations.

Nevertheless, PARNAS made an attempt to take part in the Single Voting Day and fielded its candidates in three regions of Russia: Kaluga, Kostroma and Novosibirsk regions. However, the attempt failed - only Mikhail Kasyanov managed to register in the Kostroma region, where he received a little more than two percent of the vote - for which he received the unflattering nickname "Misha 2 percent."

By the end of the year, ex-oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky also became more active: he was summoned from England to the Investigative Committee, which charged the businessman in absentia with organizing the murder of the mayor of Nefteyugansk in 1998. While abroad, Khodorkovsky entered into an argument with a resident of Murmansk, who joked about the tweet of the ex-oligarch, and called the inhabitants of the region the descendants of convicts. The British, having learned that a Russian lives in their country, who is accused of contract killings in his homeland, sign a petition on the Internet, under which they ask to evict Khodorkovsky from the country.

Armworld: Summing up the military events of 2016, how would you characterize this year?

- The year was full of various events, while tragic and decisive events for us took place, in particular, the four-day April war. This was followed by a series of dismissals in the Ministry of Defense and the Armed Forces of Armenia, new appointments, up to the appointment of a new Minister of Defense, several criminal cases were initiated against some officials.

The most important, key event, of course, was the April war. It was unprecedented in terms of the number of victims, since after the conclusion of the ceasefire agreement in 1994, there were no recorded so many victims due to incidents at the borders.

In addition, this war has become a serious test for the defensive system that we have built over the course of 25 years. The war showed that although the enemy army exceeded the Armenian forces in number, in the quantity of military equipment, in some varieties and in quality, and although special forces entered the battle from the Azerbaijani side, the Armenian side managed to resist them, not allowing the enemy to achieve military superiority.

Of course, this is the style of many human lives, both from the Armenian and from the Azerbaijani side. It is impossible to say exactly how many soldiers were killed on the Azerbaijani side. After much research, only approximate figures have been clarified. It is known that this country always hides its real losses. According to official data, in 2016, the Azerbaijani side allegedly suffered 116 combat and 35 non-combat losses. Allegedly, 96 of the combat losses are the result of the April war.

Meanwhile, in May, US State Department officials, speaking of the April war, said that both sides together suffered 350 casualties, including civilians. If we subtract the losses of the Armenian side from this figure, it turns out that the Azerbaijanis lost 250 soldiers in the April war alone.

- Then statements were made that the soldiers of the Armenian side were armed with equipment from the Soviet years, and it was said that the army was not very ready for large-scale military operations, intelligence was mistaken, as a result of which the attack became unexpected for the Armenian side.

- I assume that we are talking about weapons of the 80s. I note that these weapons are now used all over the world. Even older weapons are being used.

Context

Is a breakthrough possible in Karabakh?

Armworld 10/19/2016

Has the Kremlin conceived "Karabakh"?

Haqqin.az 27.09.2016

Karabakh splits Armenia

Haqqin.az 29.08.2016

Karabakh for three

Deutsche Welle 06/22/2016 For example, the United States in its army uses B52 bombers, which are weapons of the 1950s. You need to understand that new or old existing weapons are not important. It is important how this weapon performs the tasks assigned to it. In addition, a significant part of the old weapons can be upgraded using electronic control capabilities. It is less expensive than acquiring new weapons. So, at a lower cost, you can get weapons equivalent to modern ones.

So, it seems to me that the issue of old weapons is exaggerated and was introduced into the discourse with the aim of discrediting our army, in order to allegedly show that our army is weak and the authorities, the government are allegedly responsible for this. Not thinking that there are significant differences between the Armenian and Azerbaijani armies in terms of modern weapons.

And intelligence should really work much better and be able to correctly analyze every move of the enemy. This time they thought that the steps of the Azerbaijani side were another border sabotage and did not take it seriously. This cannot be allowed.

Do you think we have learned the lessons of the April war?

- Of course. First, our security doctrines have been revised. The pace of implementation of defense projects has also accelerated. It cannot be said that before the war steps were not taken to strengthen military positions and develop the military industry. Prior to that, positions were also equipped with monitoring devices, night vision devices, but after the war this process intensified sharply.

The same thing happened in the direction of the military industry. It seems that only after April this area became one of the key ones for us. But it's not. Back in 2015, a law on the military-industrial complex was adopted, after which the legal process of developing this sphere began, a number of documents were adopted, a concept was developed, priorities were identified, on the basis of which the military industry should already develop.

Even the military-industrial exhibition held in 2016 was planned long before that. This is also one of the achievements of our military sphere last year, as many agreements were signed with the aim of developing the military industry of Armenia, agreements were reached with different countries.

“Armenian specialists complain that they have good ideas, inventions in the field of the military industry to create weapons or use technology, but the government does not meet them halfway, and these ideas remain on paper.

“People who expect that their ideas can immediately come to life and that funds will be immediately allocated for this are not pragmatic. In the military industry, it takes decades to bring a bright idea to life and begin mass production.

The equipment that is being developed today in Russia or the United States will only be put into operation in 15-20 years, if it passes the tests. These weapons and technologies must be tested, improved, developed, and become ideal for a long time, so that at a crucial moment on the battlefield it does not become clear that they do not work. That is why such investments are not expedient for us so far, since it is more profitable to buy ready-made and reliable, tested weapons from other countries.

Of course, it would be more profitable, much more profitable, if we spent much more money to establish research centers in our country, to organize production so as not to depend on the outside world even in the matter of supplying weapons. But this requires a lot of time and investment. The government is taking steps in this direction, it cannot be considered that nothing is being done. But the results will be tangible only after a few years.

- Almost ten months have passed since the April events, but the international community has not given a commensurate reaction to Azerbaijan's actions. What developments are there in this direction, can Armenia even expect that Azerbaijan will be held accountable to some extent?

- As far as I remember, over the past twenty years, only those countries that had problems with the United States were held accountable. Azerbaijan is considered a full member of the international community, and I don't think that such steps will be taken against it.

But besides, it must be admitted that the statements of the OSCE Minsk Group often coincide with the position of the Armenian side. Today, both the Armenian side and the co-chairs of the Minsk Group are focusing on international mechanisms for investigating incidents, on preventing them, and withdrawing snipers from the first line, to which Azerbaijan naturally reacts with hysteria. That is, the views of the Armenian side and the Minsk Group are directed in the same direction, which cannot be said about Azerbaijan.

The materials of InoSMI contain only assessments of foreign media and do not reflect the position of the editors of InoSMI.

This is, first of all, the “Arab spring”, which was called the “Twitter revolution”. It began in December 2010 in Tunisia, but really unfolded in 2011. Unfolded with a domino effect - in Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Yemen, Bahrain and Syria.

No doubt, "Twitter" and "Facebook" played their role in putting together a militant "virtual crowd". But taking into account the peculiarities of the Arab world, mass protests there cannot be explained only by new technologies. The rebels drew the energy of the rebellion mainly from mosques.

The beginning of unrest in the Middle East seemed to many to be the beginning of the democratization of this region. However, already in February-March, expert assessments appeared, according to which the “Arab Spring” could turn into an Islamization of regimes. Those who, at the call of the Internet, took to the squares of the North African and Middle Eastern capitals did not have clear programs. This is an important feature of demonstrations organized in this way, be it the battles in Tahrir Square, the recent riots in the cities of England, or the "occupy Wall Street" demonstrations that have taken place in many countries of the world. There are no programs, no special ideas, but there are requirements. In North Africa and the Middle East - "down with corruption", "down with unemployment", but most importantly - "down with Mubarak, Ben Ali, Gaddafi, Saleh, Assad." And that's it. It seemed to those crowding in the squares that it was worth displacing the bored rulers, and everything would be fine.

In Tunisia and Egypt, under the slogan "Down with" irreplaceable and corrupt leaders were forced out of the political field. And the organized religious parties "Ennahda" and "Muslim Brotherhood" entered this field. And those who started the Arab Spring in these countries under the democratic slogans of a change of power lost to these monolithic and ideological groups in free elections. Well, if the opinion about "Ennahd" and "Muslim Brotherhood" as "moderate Islamists" is indeed confirmed. I met such a predetermined outcome of the Arab elections when I was in PACE. I had to be an observer of this organization in the free elections in Palestine. It didn't take much insight to assume a Hamas victory. And so it happened. True, times are changing, and there is no reason to believe that there will be no democratic reforms at all in Tunisia and Egypt. They are quite possible, but, of course, based on the cultural foundations of the population of these countries.

Forceful imputation of the norms of Western democracy and, moreover, values ​​does not work in the Arab world. For example, no sooner had the US military left Iraq than the authorities of that country issued an arrest warrant for Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi. This is despite the fact that this terrorist suspect is a Sunni vice president, and the Shia Nouri al-Maliki holds the post of prime minister. So far, "tension is growing" between Sunni politicians and supporters of the Iraqi prime minister. But what if there is a serious confrontation there? In addition, perhaps by accident, but Tariq al-Hashemi at the time of the issuance of the warrant was not anywhere, but in Kurdistan ...

In Libya, the "Arab Spring" turned into a civil war. In the midst of events, I had to carry out the instructions that I received during the G-8 summit in Deauville and visit Benghazi and Tripoli in succession. And there, and there, no one wanted any negotiations. After the adoption of the UN Security Council Resolution 1973, the outcome of the war in Libya was, in fact, a foregone conclusion.

In 2011, other noteworthy international events took place besides the Arab Spring. This is the eurozone crisis with the change of leadership in Greece and Italy, and the accident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant. The elimination of Bin Laden and the terrorist attack in Norway. The scandal associated with the former head of the IMF, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, and the trial of Yulia Tymoshenko. Differences between Russia and the United States on the problem of European missile defense. But I am the special envoy of the President of Russia for Africa. Therefore, my most vivid impressions are connected, of course, with work on this continent.

I had to visit almost all African countries south of the Sahara. It doesn't make sense to list all levels of meetings. I can only say that Russia is actively returning to Africa. And I consider the Russia-Africa business forum held on December 16 in Addis Ababa to be an important result of my year-long work. Here it is appropriate to note the following. In the 1990s, we practically withdrew from Africa, leaving a clearing for the business of the United States, the European Union and China. China - especially. And today, to succeed in competition, our business here requires direct state support. China, one of the leaders in terms of investment in the African economy, provides such support to its companies. On the other hand, the predisposition of the authorities of African countries to the work of our entrepreneurs on the continent is also necessary. One of the tools for such interaction should be the Russia-Africa forum, becoming, if you like, a kind of Davos for Africa. According to the general opinion, this "starting" forum was successful, at a quite representative level on both sides. It is appropriate to say that the second co-chair of the forum was the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Meles Zenawi.