Italy will allocate 2 million euros to assist refugees from Artsakh

ArmInfo.  Another round of political consultations between the foreign ministries of Armenia and Italy was held in Yerevan.  The consultations were chaired by Vahan Kostanyan, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade of Armenia, and Edmondo Cirielli, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy.

According to the press service of Armenia’s Foreign Ministry, the parties highly appreciated the intensification of political dialogue between Armenia and Italy. In this context, they also noted the importance of the participation of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in the European Political Community summit held in Yerevan in May this year.

A number of areas on the bilateral Armenian-Italian agenda were discussed, including prospects for expanding cooperation in the field of development.

In the context of Armenia’s foreign economic relations and the diversification of export markets, the parties discussed opportunities to expand trade and economic cooperation between Armenia and Italy, promote mutual investment, and strengthen direct ties between the business communities of the two countries. The need to make fuller use of the existing economic potential was emphasized, including in light of the expanded functions of Armenia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade in the field of economic diplomacy.

Kostanyan welcomed the Italian side’s decision to open a regional office of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) in Yerevan, emphasizing that this is an important step toward strengthening the long-term partnership between the two countries. Italy’s initiative to provide assistance worth 2 million euros to displaced persons (refugees from Artsakh - ed.) was also highly appreciated.

The deepening of the partnership between Armenia and the EU and opportunities for further development of Armenian-Italian cooperation in this direction were addressed.

An exchange of views was held on regional and international developments. Kostanyan presented his Italian counterpart with the latest developments aimed at strengthening peace in the South Caucasus and the positive dynamics that have emerged following the Washington agreements, and also touched upon new opportunities for developing regional connectivity and expanding economic cooperation, including within the framework of the TRIPP project.

It should be noted that on September 19, 2023, Azerbaijan, under the pretext of an "anti-terrorist operation," committed another act of aggression against Artsakh. As a result of the enemy aggression, hundreds of Artsakh residents were wounded, while reports at the time said that more than 200 people had been killed, including civilians. On September 20, Artsakh fell. Azerbaijan began the forcible subjugation of the NKR. In addition, late in the evening of September 20, it became known that Azerbaijan had deliberately fired on two vehicles belonging to the Russian peacekeeping contingent, killing 6 people, including the deputy commander of the Russian Peacekeeping Contingent.   On September 22, the process of disbanding the Artsakh Defense Army began. During search operations from September 21 to 24, the NKR Ministry of Internal Affairs discovered the bodies of 105 Artsakh residents, including children and elderly people who had been brutally killed. Today, Artsakh has been completely disarmed, and its entire indigenous population of more than 120,000 people was forced to flee to Armenia under threat of physical violence.

As a result of the enemy aggression that began in the fall of 2020 and culminated in the complete ethnic cleansing of Artsakh in September 2023, more than 150,000 Artsakh residents became homeless.