On March 16, in Paris, Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan participated and delivered remarks in the 40th special session of the Ministerial Conference of the La Francophonie.

The Foreign Minister of Armenia drew the attention of the participants to the actions of Azerbaijan aimed at escalating the situation in the South Caucasus amid the current geopolitical realities. The actions of Azerbaijan aimed at causing a humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh were presented, in particular, the facts of creating obstacles in the works of restoring vital infrastructure, targeting the civilian population, exerting psychological pressure on the population.

The Foreign Minister of Armenia stressed the need for a clear and targeted response of the Heads of states and governments of the La Francophonie to the Azerbaijani authorities refraining them from the attempts to destabilise the situation in the region. It was stressed that Armenia is committed to a comprehensive and lasting settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict under the mandate of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship, and is ready for negotiations on the peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan without preconditions.

In his speech, Minister Mirzoyan emphasized that despite the many challenges - from the COVID-19 pandemic to the 44-day war in 2020, Armenia remains committed to the consistent process of reforms based on the values of democracy, protection of human rights and the rule of law, as well as the fight against corruption.