Armenian News - NEWS.am presents a daily digest of Armenia’s top news as of 21.02.2020.

• Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan gave an interview to the Public Television where he summed up results of his meeting with Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev and other key topics.

Discussion of the Nagorno-Karabakh issue with Aliyev within the framework of the Munich Security Conference, is a turning point, Pashinyan said. He believes that conversation has clearly shown to the international community that Armenia has a constructive stance on the Karabakh issue, whereas Azerbaijan has a destructive, even racist stance.

Speaking about upcoming referendum, Pashinyan said that people don’t trust the Constitutional Court which served the former corrupt government. He didn’t agree with the opinion that there shouldn’t be turbulence in the public through the new referendum.

• Armenia's processing industry has grown by 12% in 2019,  the first in the GDP structure for the first time since 2008, Armenian PM said.

The second highest sectoral growth was recorded by the financial and insurance services - 22%, which gives hope for a further decline in loan interest rates, he added.

• Armenian investigators instituted a criminal cased based on articles about Minister of Territorial Administration Suren Papikyan published on hraparak.am and lragir.am websites.

The Special Investigation Service of Armenia has instituted a criminal case based on the report prepared in relation to the article “Suren Papikyan Concealed His Conviction” published on hraparak.am on February 13, 2020 and the article “Suren Papikyan Hinted Who Organized Outflow of Confidential Information About Him” published on lragir.am on February 14, 2020.

The criminal case has been instituted in relation to the case of alleged crime of illegally gathering and keeping information deemed to be secret of a person’s personal life.

• The Armenian National Committee of America urged the Trump Administration to start matching every dollar they send to Azerbaijan with another to Armenia.

The Administration’s $100 million security and military aid package to Baku enables new offensive capabilities and frees up other military resources for the Aliyev regime’s ongoing aggression against Artsakh and Armenia, they said.

In testimony submitted to the House Appropriations Committee this week, the ANCA requested a provision in the foreign aid bill requiring that no funds may be provided to the Azerbaijani government until the President determines that Baku is taking steps to cease all blockades and other offensive uses of force against Armenia and Karabakh.

• Armenia’s ten best athletes of 2019 were awarded at the presidential residence on February 21.

The best athletes were selected by coaches, sport journalists and fans. World champion, weightlifter Simon Martirosyan, Olympic champion, Greco-Roman wrestler Artur Aleksanyan, world championship silver medal winner, weightlifter Gor Minasyan were among the awardees.

Two-time Olympic champion, Bulgaria national team coach Armen Nazarian has been awarded by a medal for service to homeland.