We are joined by:
|
Ardashes
‘Ardy’ Kassakhian who is a Glendale City Councilman, and the
current mayor of Glendale. |
|
Armenian
News Network / Groong
Conversations on Groong: With Ardy
Kassakhian
Hello
and welcome to the Armenian News Network, Groong.
This
episode was recorded on Wednesday, July 13, 2022.
In
today’s Conversations on Groong
we’re going to talk about a number of topics relevant to Armenia, Glendale, the
US, and more.
We are joined by:
|
Ardashes
‘Ardy’ Kassakhian who is a Glendale City Councilman, and the
current mayor of Glendale. |
|
● You were elected to the Glendale City Council in
2020, can you describe the past 2 years in office for you?
● What goals had you set for yourself, and how are
you doing by your own measure?
You were not up
for re-election, but two other Armenian councilmen were. Ara Najarian was re-elected, while Vrej
Aghajanian was not. Instead, Glendale voted for Elen Asatryan. We should mention that Dan Brotman was also elected to city council.
Glendale is roughly 50% Armenian, as is the council.
● What does Asatryan’s election mean for the
Armenian community here?
● Is the Glendale city council a point of
connection with the Diaspora high-commissioner’s office, as it is called since Zareh moved there?
This past week
Ara Najarian became the chairman of the LA Metro board.
● Can you tell us why this role is important, and
how it can affect life in LA, and Glendale?
● What is your outlook on the midterm elections?
● What happens to Biden’s agenda if the Dems lose
the House and/or Senate in November?
What are your
thoughts about the level of political advocacy of Armenian-American citizens?
Many times, we sell ourselves as the second largest politically active diaspora
after Israel, but is that comparison correct?
Even before the
44-day war, there were signs that there were many gaps between US foreign
policy and Armenian political advocacy. For instance, for many years, the US
continued to provide military aid to Azerbaijan, blatantly waiving Section 907
of the Freedom Support Act, which intended to curb US weapons sales to Baku.
Let’s
discuss for a moment the so-called “Normalization” process between Turkey and
Armenia.
● What is your view on the current
process between Armenia and Turkey?
● What does “Normalization” between
Turkey and Armenia mean to you?
One of our former
Mayors was Zareh Sinanyan,
who then resigned from the council, left Glendale, and moved to Yerevan.
● Has that experience affected the relationship of
the Glendale Armenians with the city council and the role of Mayor?
● How is the Glendale Armenian community’s
relationship with the city council?
Recently Armenian
consul general Armen Baiburtyan returned to Armenia.
I’m not sure what the state of his succession is.
● How is your relationship with the Armenian
consulate?
● How is your relationship with the Armenian
embassy in Washington, and ambassador Lilit Makunts?
What's going on
in Yerevan (protests, Opposition, etc.)
● What is your opinion on all that happened since
Nov 2020?
● Do you follow the protest movement in Armenia?
That
concludes this Conversations On Groong episode.
As always, we invite your feedback, Thanks to Laura Osborn for the music on
our podcasts. Don’t forget to subscribe to our channel on YouTube, Like our pages
and follow us on Twitter. On behalf of everyone in this episode, we wish you a
good week, thanks for listening and we’ll talk to you soon.
Ardy Kassakhian,
Ardashes ‘Ardy’ Kassakhian, Glendale, California, Mayor of Glendale,
Armenia, 44-day war, Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, Turkish-Armenian Normalization,
Armenian Genocide, Armenian Advocacy, Ara Najarian, Elen Asatryan, Vrej Aghajanian, Dan Brotman, Joe
Biden, Build Back Better, 44-day war
