On November 25, the 34th Ministerial Conference of the International Organization of La Francophonie started its work in Paris. The delegation of Armenia headed by Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian participated in the Conference.

High-level delegations of 84 member, associated and observer states and governments of the Organization, heads of affiliated bodies of the OIF attended the 34th Ministerial Conference of La Francophonie.

Henry Rabary Njaka, Foreign Minister of Madagascar, the country that chairs the International Organization of La Francophonie, and Michaëlle Jean, Secretary General of the OIF, reported on the work carried out since the previous Ministerial Conference.

Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian delivered remarks during the discussions on agenda and on urgent international and regional issues of La Francophonie. He, particularly, stated:

"Dear Mr President,
Dear Mme Secretary General,
Dear Colleagues,

First of all, I would like to thank the authorities of France for hosting the Ministerial Conference, as well as the Madagascan Presidency and the Secretariat of the International Organization of La Francophonie for the proper organization of this high-level event. I would also like to highlight the contribution of our Togo colleagues to the preparation of this ministerial meeting.

Dear Colleagues,

Mme Secretary-General, your report, presented earlier, comes to prove the large volume and diversity of the daily work carried out by our Organization.

I would note, that we have rightly placed sustainable development, protection of the environment and the fight against climate change among our priorities.

Dear Mme Secretary General, I would like to reiterate our support to your consistent activity aimed at promoting peace, democracy and human rights in the francophone area. Mediatory missions implemented jointly with regional and international partners, as well as support to the countries in the crisis situations, are the areas where our Organization has a recognized role and expertise. In this context, I would like to emphasize the commitment that Armenia has demonstrated while participating in the high-level mission dispatched by You to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Dear Colleagues,

Today we have to face the constant threat of terrorism. I would like to once again condemn in the strongest terms the terrorist activities that lately targeted also the member states of La Francophonie and reiterate our full support for the efforts of the international community in the fight against this evil.

I would like to express our deepest condolences to the families of the victims of the horrendous terrorist acts in Egypt and Mali and our solidarity with our Egyptian and Malian friends.

The participation of Armenia in the UN peacekeeping missions, particularly in the OIF member states Lebanon and Mali, testifies to our determined commitment to promote peace and stability.

With regards to the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, I would like to once again highlight the importance of what has been mentioned in the resolutions adopted during the last three Francophonie summits, where our full support to the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs is reiterated. It is urged in the resolutions to respect the trilateral cease-fire agreements of 1994-1995, which have no time limitation, to reiterate the commitment to continuing the peace process based on the principles proposed by the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs as a basis for exclusively peaceful settlement of the conflict, which are an indivisible whole, namely, the non-use of force or threat of force, equality and self-determination of peoples and territorial integrity.

Dear Mme Secretary General,

I also want to express our appreciation for your efforts aimed at strengthening the role of youth in our societies and enhancing the participation of women in decision-making processes.

In this regard, we value your initiative, as a result of which the Francophone Women's Conference was organized in Bucharest. Expressing our full support to the Call adopted in the outcome of the Conference, we believe that the Strategy of La Francophonie on Equality between Men and Women can be included in the list of documents for adoption at the Yerevan Summit, in 2018.

Armenia supports the draft resolutions and decisions submitted for the approval of the Ministerial Conference.

I will stop at that since I will be having several interventions during this Conference.

Thank you."