welcome back to with all its here live from moscow where it's now a five thirty pm recap now of the main stories. colza war crimes and genocide charges against him but not shifts as he appears at the hague tribunal the form of both me and a sub general claims he was just defending his country some say serbia sacrificed a lot is to join the e.u. but its capture doesn't seem to be speeding up that process. a fire has been raging at an ammunition dump in a central russia for sixteen hours triggering just

a chain of explosions the accident discoursed dozens of injuries and forced thousands from their homes. and russia condemns an international proposal to legalize soft drugs as playing into the hands of the narcotics cartels moscow says the report by the global commission on drug policy could be rail the global fight against drugs. there's all the headlines here and coming your way next week look at how russia's southern neighbor has been developing over the turbulent years off of the for the soviet union to stay with us. people living in this land seven thousand years ago were already making wine and shoes this world's oldest shoe was drawn right here in this hole in the fourth century armenia adopted christianity as its state religion i was fit for astonished . in the early twentieth century armenians went through the horrors of genocide.

only one point five million are. sealed group to move on when you broke free from the soviet union in september one thousand nine hundred ninety one was hands independence brought to this ancient country. in two thousand and eight archaeologists released yesterday and could have rivaled armenian politicians in terms of popularity news of his discovery had spread far and wide for out the world in caves in the mountains around the village of early need the archaeologists have found the settlements dating back to the year five thousand b.c. . it's in this also believed this was for among the first funds a group when we saw them it was immediately clear to us that they dated from the corporon stone age that means the people were already living in the east coast

seven thousand years ago so even the communities maintaining very close contact inhabited nereus which were in the north caucasus and missed the timing of the used to migrate from north to service and self to normal goodness. excavation work at the site of the ancient settlement has been going on for three years now but archaeologists are still unable to say with certainty what kind of people lived in these caves seven thousand years ago. just take a little you can see a very interesting ritual the bodies of babies under one year of age old verity intact but women between the ages of eleven to twenty five simply chalked up to full burials. the most interesting artifact was found in the case in two thousand and eight the world's oldest suv was dug up from a depth of just half a metre is estimated to be about six thousand years old this world's all sure was

very right here in this hole it was a great deal of effort to get it to the discovery of the settlement is an event of crucial importance to the small trans caucasian country armenians are proud of the long history of this land and the find reinforces their pride. in our media there are a few other handicrafts they can unite generations is not such as the making of hatch cards or tombstones. the arts has undergone little change throughout its thousand year history and hammer chisel and stone are all that's needed for the job the man and his grandson are working on this much god. is good on this i like the job. is handed down from generation to generation. the one who taught me was my grandfather. over the course of his long

life the elderly man has made scores of hatch cards nowadays he mentors his grandson in the ways of hatch car sculpting. there are millions of vij cars here each with a different is different just as people do all the curbing curran's are different even on some particular don't story there's a show that the world isn't perfect. each grave or monastery has its own tailor made tombstone normally it takes about a month to make one this symmetry in a village of nora does is one of the oldest in armenia the long history of this caucasian country the history packed with. drama can be traced by looking at the tombstones up until the seventh century look quite simple at that there is nothing but across a car the first crust of. the

hash code is in the cemetery don't feature carvings although the graveyard of the small town of spitfire is much larger. before the quake it was a small symmetry but as you can see now it's quite big. which of it do so for two days to very quickly get him his. torso to ceann comes to the symmetry quite often the always follows the same route in this mortal place as he moves from one grave to another on the sim of the seventh one thousand nine hundred eighty eight he lost nearly all of his family. it was ten fourteen am when the first tremor with a magnitude of seven on the ridge the scale shook spit out thirty seconds later the

tiny town was no more just a pile of rubble. more than the one of the main street in the center of the town was c. and. when the quake struck there were people in every apartment of a five story houses to the phyllis's here and both sides of the road the only bit of ditch you practically all of them fell a planted food dish only roost lying on the walls floors could be seen out of the quake of one. there is a church where our tours house once was more than twenty years on there are a few reminders of that devastating earthquake. but in the cold month of december one thousand nine hundred eighty eight people around the world came to know the name of this small town in armenia a began pouring in. from across the soviet union at that time armenia was part of it. the powerful earthquake a fake to wall of armenia's northern areas as well as attack. the scale of the

disaster only became apparent after several days just a handful of people had survived on of the rubble the earthquake had claimed twenty five thousand lives. such as the church did or when the smoke cleared away three or four hours after the earthquake it became clear that the town had been razed to the ground where they'd begin arriving towards leaving because there were no room for. some of the aid came from numerous diasporas in foreign countries. this footage shows charles as an avoider a french saying at of armenian origin after a visit to the devastated states attack he vows to do his best to help armenia. but there's so much that i was really shocked by what i saw in st. i could never imagine their polling scale of that disaster. because so many people were killed here because. the french singer set up

a fund for the earthquake struck country the money was used to restore dozens of houses in st tacon chorus armenia's second largest town it to had been affected by the disaster the town's residents unveiled a monument that has no voice as a token of gratitude to him here for a memory on build a monument on the twenty second of september in two thousand objects was nobody who from all or nearly came here they were also visitors from france. after the break up of the soviet union in one nine hundred ninety one reconstruction work in armenian town slowed down the new houses built in the three years after the disaster made up only one fifth of those destroyed by. the earthquake. we came here on december second we were given a room on the ground floor and we still live here most of the tenants here are

refugees. and his family also lost their home in december one thousand nine hundred eighty eight they became refugees but not as a result of the earthquake it was a bloody interethnic conflict that forced them to flee. armenia is a republic situated in the trans caucuses enjoying the soviet union in one thousand nine hundred twenty two when the republic won independence in september one thousand nine hundred ninety one this was the most troubled region in the post soviet space the country was at war with neighboring azerbaijan over nagorno-karabakh.

that bleach up the wood for the winter. was issuing and this is our home a lot of these are my grandchildren doing their homework. before where is our store and we made it their selves because there's no other source of reading in here you knew for sure when his house in azerbaijan's capital of baquba was larger and more comfortable they had to leave their native city in a hurry already there was gunfire in the corner kind of block as and why johnny's were fleeing that area meanwhile the situation for armenians living. azerbaijan was becoming increasingly dangerous. when for quite a good deal for instance my husband had an aunt with a dark complexion it was easy to see that she was a median she was attacked several times under natural that the conflicts root cause

stems from the one nine hundred twenty s. when azerbaijan and armenia joined the soviet union by calling care about a territory where armenians had been a predominant population from time immemorial was placed under azerbaijan's control they didn't matter much you controlled mccormick had a bad back then the soviet republics or part of an integrated country by the time bomb eventually went off and violence erupted between the two in the late one nine hundred eighty s. . because there has been the soviet government showed signs of weakness at the start of perestroika when people were told they could speak up without running the risk of being imprisoned oryx a curator of group of people across the soviet union began talking about their concerns i mean ian's in a golden color back started asking questions they wanted to know why a little part of azerbaijan even though armenia was next door to a country populated by people of the same nationality and culture which are

beautiful. but who flatly rejected the advance demands the nagorno-karabakh be handed over to armenians control. meanwhile the first major interethnic conflict was gathering pace in the soviet union south it had been fueled by events in the small town of some guy eight the azerbaijan's capital of the soon good massacre was the point of no return people were murdered mind you people were killed not in the going to care about itself but in some gun town situated far from the going to karabakh going to go to the there is no war now but there is no peace either there is no peace treaty to control the. no wonder i'm certainly not roger can understand here is nearly there gil i was in

the army then was memories of those days come thick and fast and this is about all . there is a map of the soviet union in go nine a pity ends workshop as a tailor he needs something colorful to rest his eyes on but the map also gives food for thought he recalls the days when everybody lived in the same country a country that later burst at the seams. this is their. home which was found again and then there again two thousand and one day for the said it to found the bell to call it in there and go up and the kids were descended and then again and i am. nobody at this distillery can say with any certainty when cognac from this barrel will be bottles but it has every chance of a coming of into each brand adding to the distilleries rich collection.

add stella cents to a trickle three hundred bottles and branded me each here and that's when equality granted. the british prime minister was not alone in appreciating this brandy in soviet times armenian cognac was the main symbol of the republic. many agreed that the strong beverage produced in the trans caucuses could easily compete with french cognac manufacturers. trained in soon they're going to flavor is intense you can sense a whole bouquet of flavors viewers because it's a unique beverage because of the rules and here i can detect the flavor of our brands the sunshine of arab valley and the beauty of our landscapes been. the production process in armenia and france is totally identical the spirits of the stilled in the same way and the oak barrels look very much alike the armenians are just proud of their product as the french are of theirs going out and i think

that corny arc is one of the most important and most recognizable brands produced in our knee at work but they go well you can see there it's one of the army is symbols. for love of the moon and. interacts can be seen from several spots around the entire history of the armenian people is links to it but it's off limits to armenians they can't reconcile themselves with the loss. of more than a month. in one of the most extreme environments on the planet this is and are to death and people have to be aware that they are far away from civilization and sean thomas discovers what makes antarctica is so special and attractive for many wildlife in antarctica is the bones and friends of.

the expedition to the bottom of the earth are three. hungry for the full story we've got it first hand the biggest issues get the human voice face to face with the news makers on. the mountains height is five thousand one hundred thirty seven meters above sea level according to the bible mount out of rats was the first landmark the no a sought after escaping the great flood mound you know in the bible to fight and it is connected with no ark so after the road to nowhere are stopped on the people. however other ants is the main source of pain and suffering. well armenians under the nine hundred twenty one agreements signed by soviet and turkish leaders the symbolic mountain was left on the other side of the border. to the territory of turkey but still it continues to be i mean seen when i mean people

they are asked about their national identities they start with the amount that the fact that out of that is no longer in their territory also serves as a reminder of the greatest tragedy of the country's people the armenian genocide genocide is the word used in armenian to describe the policy pursued by the ottoman empire towards ethnic armenians from the late nineteenth century through to the one nine hundred twenty s. in total in ninety eighty ninety four nine hundred twenty two within thirty years nearly to me thirty years earlier one point five million armenians killed brutally in the same time turkey was the first country to officially recognize i mean is independent sin one nine hundred ninety one today turkish society is divided over the events that led to the deaths of one and a half million armenians in the early twentieth century and killer of fuses to

officially acknowledge the fact there what happened a century ago was genocide as one of the hardest. problems between two nations was the fundamental problem fundamental problem here is that turkey in order instead of facing its own history to try and keep trying to deny the very part of take issue share full page of its own history i mean in genocide rewriting histories of one of the dangerous processes in every society until are supported as otherwise shan at the height of the ethnic conflict over nagorno-karabakh it closed its borders to armenians the border between armenia and azerbaijan is likewise locked up. given airport is the main gateway to armenia travelers have little choice considering year of iran's difficult relations with neighboring countries these east way of getting to get a van is by air as. you have to go by here if you want to leave our

media with the only way because this country has been blockaded throughout the post so you can period. force or me has land borders with georgian around but there is a little cross border traffic there and therefore going by air is still of their stock. nearly every plane is filled to capacity it's clearly demonstrated by flights going to russia which is now armenia's biggest economic partner one of the largest armenian vaster is is found in moscow. that is deviation is the only means of transport for amenia it's obvious that there is no other way out. that's why ugh lanes are always full of passengers.

armenia was the world's first country to turn christianity into a state's religion that was way back in the early fourth century a.d. for more than fifteen centuries armenians have regarded faith and church as a substitute for the state. i argument and saving human souls and preserving the nation are the two missions personhood by the armenian church today as it has been doing throughout its existence arc and we're doing our best to remedy the harm done by the genocide of armenians and eighty years of godlessness under the soviet regime. fortunately the soviet campaign to stamp out the church had little impact in armenia it didn't affect the scores of ancient monasteries many of them are over a thousand years old. it's now possible to reach the top three

one of armenians oldest by cable way. is the world's longest reversible road the fifteen minute journey offers a magnificent view of a deep picturesque. number we're in the cabin of the total cable way the world's longest it links the village of avid sword to the total monastery but there's hope it is five thousand seven hundred fifty metres long and its highest point above ground is three hundred twenty meters watts and. when the cableway was opened in october twenty ten the hope was that it would attract foreign tourists. its design is unique in many ways for instance the nearly six kilometer long cable way has only three supports european specialists help to build it. this is our main electric generator it produces five hundred thirty three kilowatts

here you can see the emergency diesel generators if the electricity fails we will turn these on and of back your passengers we have a great safety system in place too and. most of the cable car passengers are people living in nearby villages who gets. free transport influx of foreign tourists is small for the time being but the businessmen who have invested in the ambitious project believe that in a couple of years armenia will become a popular tourist destination. hotels and campsites are already being built around the monastery and the cable way. we need water of differing temperatures to treat gastrointestinal diseases their structures in particular if the patient is suffering from high incidence they have destroyed the temperature of the mineral water we give him is between fifty and fifty three degrees celsius in low e. cities in cases it's from thirty to fifty five degrees. the town of jenin maclise

in the mountains during the soviet years people here already knew how to attract tourists a spa similar to the celebrated karlovy valley resorts has been in operation in general but decades that it must have other dealing with the composition of our award are better than that of the water it's carlevaro in the czech republic. our water contains more on our hands and minerals and than all that said bob. local mineral water is yet another armenian brand it is true though that it's not as famous as cognac or ancient monasteries but residents of gentlemen hope that the water and spa resort will be another incentive for people to visit armenia. a german communal water springs from the ground in those words for trees between forty five and sixty degrees or what nice old certain mints result from our mineral

water of the. the time being only tourists from russia visit the gentleman explains. this huge bucket contains molten alamy and it will take several hours and the production process involving a dozen phases for the allen minium to be turned into super fine for oil this plant is one of amin is leading industrial enterprises like many others it was inherited from the soviet era but like most other industrial plants it's said idle during the first years of independence that was a very difficult period for this nation the plan survival began in two thousand when it became part of a row. ssion holding them up this is not the bunch was reopened after modernization . despite the crisis it has grown stronger with each passing year with. their actions in our mediums work here together the assets are rushing off the felt these are turns that when young represents what might be called the local dentist

the his father used to work at this plant filed in my mother and father used to work here and now it's time for my brother and me but i'm not a unique case and everybody here has taken the job over from their old folks. the plant is one of the most successful in the country and should come as no surprise they have russian investment and the whole of the coax is as they market. world through example the color of the more taro you see a little newts we will get dice from herbs ago a mixture of me dies makes the roads look darker it looks like serif there are fewer drivers the root matter produces a very beautiful red dye no chemicals around it nothing but natural components making rugs is a family business to the subtleties of this very old armenian handicraft handed

down from generation to generation. because the little square means in odds with the way we've rolled after row boats and every color is here it is. like the element implants this factory has a soviet past behind it then automatically looms who brought in to make rugs quickly and in large quantities none the less ancient technologies have become popular in armenia since independence. takes a month for the we were to complete one square metre that's a very difficult job taking a lot of effort for that reason their prices are higher than those of machine me. researcher a good home is seen as a sign of wealth. there are some ten million ethnic armenians around the world just over three million of them live in armenia the armenians at home believe that the worst of a country's history is a thing of the past in a van they like to say the nights are their darkest just before dawn people across

armenia believe that dawn has already broken over their country.