Preliminary examples of smartphones and tablets set to be produced in Armenia by 2014 were presented during Friday’s meeting of Armenia’s Industrial Council by the Prime Minister of Armenia.

On the evening of November 30 the Ray Dolby Ballroom was filled to capacity, a sea of round tables with green colored programs perched atop the tabletops posing a striking contrast to the black linen cloths covering nearly 100 beautifully decorated tables. As I glanced around the ballroom after a long day of set-up was complete, the ANCA logo – with its characteristic red, blue, and orange next to the stars and stripes – was evident from every place setting meticulously set at each participant’s seat. The green draped programs figuratively represented the grassroots mission of the ANCA, standing tall and proud.

Black Friday was embraced at the famous Loews Hollywood Hotel on November 29 with a lively, bustling crowd of 500 people shuffling through registration and check-ins, many scrambling over to Sebu Simonian to have a picture taken with the award winning Capital Cities’ star, others were hugging each other after several years of separation anxiety.

The Consulate General of Azerbaijan in Los Angeles is asking the city of Highland to rescind its recent proclamation granting sister city status to the Nagorno Karabakh Republic, reported The Sun newspaper.

Twenty five years ago, on December 7, 1988, a catastrophic earthquake ripped through Armenia, decimating the town of Spitak and surrounding areas. The quake left more than 25,000 people dead, 15,000 injured, 517,000 homeless, and $14.2 billion in economic damage.

It was around 7 a.m. on December 7th, 1988. Our telephone woke me up. Our assignment editor at the Associated Press in New York was calling me.

Hassan Rouhani’s victory in the presidential elections brought significant changes in Iran’s foreign and domestic policy. The easing of tension between the West and Iran on nuclear programs was a priority of Rouhani’s foreign policy, and an agreement on the issue was reached in the Geneva talks between the parties.

Armenia has climbed from 77th to 64th place among 145 countries in Forbes Best Countries for Business 2013 rating.

Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. on Thursday appointed Armen Tamzarian to a judgeship in the Los Angeles County Superior Court, among seven other appointees, according to the Governor’s press service.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu announced on Dec. 5 that he would be visiting Armenia next week, marking a first diplomatic push since the protocols between the two countries signed in 2009 which foresaw the development of relations, including a decision on opening the borders, was shelved.

The meeting of Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyariv and the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, Igor Popov, Jacques Faure, James Warlick and Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk took place in Ukraine’s capital Kiev on December 4.

The Armenian youth of Argentina rallied Wednesday in Buenos Aires, to protest against the screening of an Azeri film that told lies about the historical reality of the Republic of Nagorno Karabakh. The event was organized by the media company “Equilibrium Global” and the Azerbaijan Embassy in Argentina.

On Thursday, Dec. 5, Representative Brad Sherman (CA-30) met with the Speaker of the Parliament of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic, Ashot Ghulian, who thanked Rep. Sherman for his unwavering dedication to the people of Artsakh.

The Armenian parliament rejected on Wednesday an opposition proposal to freeze a controversial reform of the national pension system that will force workers under the age of 40 to pay more social security taxes.