Question: What was the emphasis of the meeting, and what results do we have?

Ara Aivazian: First of all, this is the 5th visit of Mr. Lemoyne to Armenia, and the second visit within the last two months. We all remember that in our most crucial times, recently,we had a consistent flow of delegations from France, which proves once again that there are privileged relations between France and Armenia. It was once again reaffirmed that France supports the interests of Armenia, Artsakh and the Armenian people. This visit is also very important because it takes place as an implementation of the agreements reached between President Emanuel Macron and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

The purpose of this visit is to expand our economic agenda. And the Secretary of State arrived in Armenia with a very large representative delegation, which has been here for several days, consisting of representatives of the French Development Agency, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Finance and Directorate General of the Treasury. And we had discussions about possible future investment programs for Armenia`s development. The two Ministries of Foreign Affairs have a lot to do in order to implement this important mission and to clarify our joint steps.

Naturally, we have touched upon the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, and I must specifically underline that France has shown its clear, impartial position from the very first day of the war. I mean, first of all, the targeted statements of President Macron and Foreign Minister Le Drian, that demonstrated which country has unleashed aggression against Artsakh. As well as for highlighting the danger of Turkey's involvement, especially taking into consideration the involvement of foreign terrorist fighters and mercenaries in the region, which endanger international peace and stability.

Of course, we addressed the issues that need to be addressed immediately, first of all the issue of the immediate repatriation of the prisoners of war. Both France and the French officials pay great attention to the speedy solution of these humanitarian issues. We express our gratitude for the efforts paid. I hope that Azerbaijan will soon resort from this policy of taking hostages, otherwise it will create problems for the official Baku.

We have also discussed the protection of our cultural heritage. Once again I would like to express my gratitude to President of France Macron and Foreig Minister Le Drian for their support, both bilaterally and multilaterally, particularly in UNESCO. 

And we have certainly had very interesting discussions on regional developments, stability, peace. I am confident that our effective dialogue will continue in the future.  I think that this year we will have a very active dialogue, and visits, as well as good results.

Question: Mr. Aivazian, regarding the cultural heritage; Mr. Lemoyne noted that certain steps will be undertaken in the near future. I would like you to clarify about the emphasis and  the certainty? 

Ara Aivazian: First of all, I want to emphasize that the historical-cultural heritage of Artsakh is part of the regional, but also of the world’s cultural heritage. Our monuments, which are more than 1,400 and remained in those Armenian territories fallen under the Azerbaijani control, are crucial evidence on the presence, identity, culture and creation 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, and during the war the international community also saw the attempts of destruction, falsification and embezzlement. France has also played a very active role in addressing this issue within UNESCO. The new Secretary of State informed me that, in the near future, France is planning to send a special mission to the region, specifically Artsakh, in order to apply fact-finding mechanisms, which will provide some guarantees for its protection.

Thank you.