ArmInfo. RA Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports Ara Khzmalyan and Alfred Kocharyan received Ambassador of France to Armenia Anne Louyot.
According to the press service of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Armenia, issues of further strengthening relations between the two countries in the field of culture, as well as expanding and enriching the agenda of the Armenian-French cooperation were discussed at the meeting. According to Khzmalyan, bilateral cooperation should be based on institutional pillars in terms of the implementation of strategic programs.
"Our task is to establish relations between the major cultural institutions of the two countries. For example, cooperation in the film industry will be effective if our programs are not limited to one master class, but there is cooperation between the National Film Center of Armenia and the French CNC. I would like these projects to carried out institutional reforms, for example, introduced the FEMIS educational method in Armenia, or so that Armenian students have the opportunity to receive education in this educational institution," he said.
Khzmalyan touched upon the possibility of joint film production, and in this context, the signing of an interstate agreement, as well as the maximum involvement of the French Armenian community in joint programs.
The Armenian side thanked the French government for the implementation of the grant program in the field of Armenian culture, within the framework of which a number of important projects of long-term importance for the country will be implemented.
In turn, the French Ambassador noted the importance of establishing annual priorities between the two countries for discussing cultural heritage issues. Touching upon the issues of film production, the Ambassador stressed that a visit of representatives of the French CNC and FEMIS, as well as an expert mission to Armenia, could be organized to discuss issues of further cooperation. Anne Louyot also presented three possible areas of the French government's cultural grants program in Armenia: training courses on the restoration of cultural heritage, work on the restoration of the Great Desert of Tatev, and support for the reorganization of the exhibition in the Erebuni Museum. According to her, the partner institutions in these areas are the French National Institute of Cultural Heritage, the RA Historical and Cultural Heritage Research Center, the Louvre and the Erebuni Museum. The Ambassador stressed the need to form a Governing Council within the framework of the above mentioned program. During the meeting, the parties also touched upon other issues of mutual interest in the field of culture.