Azerbaijan denies visas for British-Armenian Arsenal fansMay 16, 2019 - 10:52 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Arsenal have held talks with the Foreign Office in an attempt to help a number of British-Armenian season-ticket holders who have been denied a visa required to attend the Europa League final against Chelsea in Baku, The Times reports. The club are seeking to ascertain whether any pressure can be put on the Azerbaijan government to make an exception for fans who are likely to miss the final as a result of the stand-off with Armenia, countries who have severed diplomatic relations due to a conflict over Nagorno Karabakh. Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Arsenal’s Armenia midfield player, has been granted special dispensation on sporting grounds to receive a visa, but the club have yet to decide whether he will be included in Unai Emery’s squad for Baku. Meanwhile, Uefa are set to confirm whether they will meet the security requirements requested by Arsenal to ensure Mkhitaryan can play in the Europa League Final. This was also the case for Arsenal’s Europa League group stage game against Qarabag last October but a decision was taken against him travelling to Baku on security grounds. Talks are ongoing between Arsenal and Uefa. A delegation from the club was in Azerbaijan on Wednesday discussing logistics for the final at Baku’s Olympic Stadium with Uefa officials and counterparts from Chelsea. Top stories Armenian gymnast, Olympic bronze medalist Artur Davtyan has reached the finals of the World Cup. Gor Manvelyan has denied reports alleging that he has expressed a desire to one day play for the French national team. Roma midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan is not considering FC Spartak Moscow as his next haven, according to fresh reports. 10 Armenian lifters will compete in the 2021 World Championships scheduled to be held from 7 to 17 December in Tashkent. Partner news | European Parliament to discuss repression in Azerbaijan The European Parliament will discuss repression of civil society in Azerbaijan on April 24 PACE wants concessions from Azerbaijan to accept Baku back A PACE co-rapporteur said that Azerbaijani authorities must make certain concessions so that the country can return to PACE. Cyprus parliament honors Armenian genocide victims Acting House President Zacharias Koulias noted that April 24 marks the “black anniversary” of the Armenian genocide. Armenia PM, France envoy discuss regional matters Issues related to the consistent development of Armenia-France cooperation were discussed. |