Friday, January 29 2021 16:58

ArmInfo.  Armenian Foreign  Minister Ara Aivazian summed up the results of the negotiations with  the Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne, French Secretary of State for Europe and  Foreign Affairs.

Thus, according to the RA MFA, presenting the details of the  negotiations held in Yerevan with the French side, Aivazian reminded  that this is already Lemoyne's 5th visit to Armenia, and this is his  second visit in the last two months.

The head of the Armenian Foreign Ministry also drew attention to the  fact that in the most difficult times that Armenia was going through  and in the last period, the flow of visits of French delegations did  not stop, which again testifies to the privileged relations between  France and Armenia.

"It was once again confirmed that France supports the interests of  Armenia, Artsakh and the Armenian people. This visit is also very  important because it is taking place in pursuance of the agreements  reached between French President Emmanuel Macron and RA Prime  Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

This time, the purpose of the visit is to broaden our economic  agenda. And the Secretary of State arrived in Armenia with a very  large representative delegation, which has been here for several  days, including representatives of the French Development Agency, the  Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Finance and the  Treasury. And we discussed possible investment programs for the  development of Armenia in the future. The foreign ministries of the  two countries have to do a lot to fulfill this important mission and  clarify our joint steps," the Armenian Foreign Minister said.

At the same time Aivazian added that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict  was certainly discussed. In this vein, he stressed that France had  demonstrated its clear and unbiased position from the first days of  the war.

"I mean, first of all, the targeted speeches of President Macron and  Foreign Minister Le Drian, which showed which country unleashed  aggression against Artsakh. And the danger of Turkey's involvement  also has been mentioned, especially in view of the participation of  armed terrorists and mercenaries in the region, which also poses a  threat to international peace and stability.

Naturally, we touched upon issues requiring an immediate solution,  primarily the immediate release of the prisoners of war. Both France  and French officials attach great importance to the early resolution  of these humanitarian issues.  We express our gratitude for your  efforts. I hope that Azerbaijan will soon abandon this policy of  holding hostages, otherwise it will be very problematic for official  Baku," the Armenian Foreign Minister said.

According to the Minister, the issue of preserving cultural heritage  was also discussed with the French side.  In this regard, Aivazian  again expressed gratitude to the President of France and the Minister  of Foreign Affairs for their support both on a bilateral basis and on  multilateral platforms, especially UNESCO. "And we certainly had very  interesting discussions about regional events, stability, peace, and  I am sure that our fruitful dialogue will continue in the future. I  think that this year we will have a very active dialogue, visits and  good results ",  Aivazian said. Touching upon what steps will be  taken to preserve the cultural heritage in the foreseeable future,  the Foreign Minister first of all stressed that the historical and  cultural heritage of Artsakh is not only a part of the region, but  also the world cultural heritage.

"Our more than 1,400 monuments, which remain in the Armenian  territories under the control of Azerbaijan, are evidence of the  presence, identity, culture and creativity of the indigenous Armenian  people. Unfortunately, we all know that these monuments are in  danger. We had a very tragic precedent in Nakhichevan in the past.  During the war, the international community also witnessed  extermination, falsification and embezzlement attempts. France has  also played a very active role in solving this problem within the  framework of UNESCO. The new secretary of state informed me that in  the near future it is planned to send a special mission from France  to the region, to Artsakh, to use the mechanisms of establishing the  facts, which will provide certain guarantees for their protection,  "Aivazian summed up.