On September 8, Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian, upon the invitation of the Foreign Minister of France Laurent Fabius, participated in the international conference on prevention of violence against religious and ethnic minorities in the Middle East, in which high level delegations from around 60 states - foreign ministers, heads of international organizations, senior clerics, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations Jan Eliasson, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini were present.

The conference was opened by the President of France François Hollande who highlighted the convening of the conference on one of the pressing issues arisen before the international community and underlined that the situation requires the urgent response, steps to ensure the existence of minorities in the Middle East.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia Edward Nalbandian also addressed the conference, held under the chairmanship of the Foreign Ministers of France and Jordan.

Minister Nalbandian in his speech said,

“Armenia is deeply concerned by the situation in our immediate neighbourhood in the Middle East. On numerous occasions we have condemned the crimes committed by the so-called Islamic State and other terrorist networks, which threaten the people of the region and beyond.

The Armenian nation has for centuries been a unique part of the multicultural mosaic of the Middle East. We are grateful to the people of the region who a century ago sheltered hundreds of thousands of survivors of the Armenian Genocide. Now, when the ethnic and religious communities face an existential threat, we feel moral responsibility to stand with them.

The violence in the Middle East has not bypassed our compatriots, many of whom lost their lives in terrorist attacks, the Armenian settlements, churches, schools and cultural institutions were destroyed. Just as one hundred years ago tens of thousands of Armenians, together with other people of the Middle East, today again were obliged to abandon their places of residence. Only from Syria some 15 thousand Armenians found refuge in Armenia.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The protection of the ethnic and religious groups in the Middle East requires the coordination of actions and coherent support, including the humanitarian aid both to the refugees and the vulnerable communities that have become targets for the terrorists. International support should not be separated into primary and secondary directions and must be provided to all victims.

It is not a coincidence that the terrorists declared a war against the cultural heritage of the people of the region. It’s exactly through the history and the collective memory that the universal values of civilized world, the tolerance, coexistence and respect to the culture and religion of others pass from generation to generation. These values stand in a stark contrast to the ideology of xenophobia and discrimination adhered by the terrorist groups. Destruction of many Islamic sacred sites and the monuments of historic Palmyra and Nimrud, the blowing of the Armenian church in Der ez-Zor – a sanctuary of the remains of the victims of the Armenian Genocide and other similar barbaric acts are crimes committed against civilization.

It is imperative to create mechanisms to deprive terrorists of the resources and financial means, prevent the influx of the foreign fighters, precluding them to continue the use of the territory of the neighboring states for trans-boundary attacks. The international law holds responsibility not only for the crimes against humanity but also for the complicity. This should be clear for all those who deny and try to justify the past crimes and promote current violence.

The threat the ethnic and religious communities of the region face, is not mere physical, but also a civilizational challenge. To what extent the international community is able to unite and jointly fight against this evil would outline to what extent it is ready to protect its own civilizational values.

I want to express appreciation to the Ministers of France and Jordan for organizing this important and much-needed conference.