ArmInfo. The French ALIF Company , which is engaged in the protection and preservation of historical and cultural heritage, has prepared satellite images of the historical and cultural sites of Artsakh. French Minister of Culture Rima Abdul Malak stated during a press conference in Yerevan on October 26.
She noted that the pictures will allow us to see the condition of the objects, including even if they are destroyed.
At the same time, she noted that in the context of preserving the cultural heritage of Artsakh, the department works with the UNESCO organization, the office of which is located in Paris, as well as with other European countries. "We have sent an official application to UNESCO so that the latter can obtain permission to physically visit these areas. This will allow us to register all historical and cultural monuments that are Armenian, to identify them, so that we have an understanding of the existing heritage," Rima Abdul Malak noted.
She said that as the Minister of Culture, she pledged to raise the issue of preserving and protecting the historical and cultural heritage of Artsakh at all possible international platforms. "We must spare no effort to do everything possible to ensure that this issue receives due attention," the French Minister of Culture said.
Mrs. Abdul-Malak assured that France will continue cooperation with Armenia in this and other areas. In turn, the Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of Armenia Zhanna Andreasyan noted that the preservation of historical and cultural heritage as of today is one of the most important tasks, especially in the context of the existing threat to cultural monuments in Nagorno-Karabakh.
"We should try to find those effective international mechanisms that will help raise awareness and protection of cultural sites of Nagorno-Karabakh," she noted. The minister emphasized that after the Artsakh war of 2020, there is no certainty in the context of preserving the historical and cultural heritage of Artsakh, and after the forced displacement of the Artsakh population in 2023, this issue became even more aggravated. Andreasyan said that as of today over 5 thousand Armenian cultural monuments and over 20 museums remain under the control of Azerbaijan.
"And one of our main tasks is to preserve it all," she concluded, noting that Artsakh's intangible heritage is also under threat.