On September 8, Foreign Minister of Armenia Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, who is the Chairman of the OIF summit, participated and delivered remarks at “The UN and the regional and sub-regional organizations: the role of the International Organization of La Francophonie” open discussion of the UN Security Council.

The Foreign Minister highlighted the importance of initiating discussion on the cooperation between the UN and the OIF and expressed his gratitude to the Assistant Secretary-General for Africa and the Secretary General of La Francophonie for their very important remarks.

The Foreign Minister of Armenia also commended the role of Niger for initiating ussion. La Francophonie was born in Niger’s capital Niamey in 1970 as an agency of cultural and technical cooperation, and has subsequently become the basis for the formation of the Organization of La Francophonie, which celebrates its fifth decade this year.

“50 years after its founding La Francophonie represents an important platform for multilateral cooperation, which is united around the French language and fundamental values of peace, democracy, respect for human rights and equality between women and men.

The relations between the United Nations and La Francophonie are anchored on a number of actors sharing common values, who are united by the mutual willingness to work for strengthening the peace and international security, and who are determined to fight against the scourge of terrorism and to prevent genocides and crimes against humanity.

It is also based on the solid and unwavering commitment to achieve sustainable development goals.”

The Foreign Minister of Armenia highlighted the importance of holding such discussions amid the current crisis in global healthcare, humanitarian and economic spheres, which threatens to disrupt the unity of the society, strongly emphasizing the need for the establishment of international cooperation and effective multilateralism. Zohrab Mnatsakanyan described the above-mentioned discussion within the framework of the UN Security Council as a unique call for action, a test of common resilience and collective capacity.

”During this period, when the negative impacts of the crisis are more severe for the developing countries and the most vulnerable parts of the population, the UN and the Francophonie must reiterate their willingness to promote peace and cooperation, solidarity and the values of living together: this is a challenge for both organizations, and we are obliged to work towards more effective global governance.
In this regard, we resolutely support the UN Secretary-General's call for global ceasefire, as well as the relevant UN Security Council resolution, reiterating that the use of force and the threat of force has no place in the conflict settlement process.

We are also concerned about the rise of hate speech, which was particularly explicit during this healthcare crisis. Today, more than ever, it is important to emphasize our commitment to tolerance, respect for human rights, and the values ​​of cultural diversity. Despite the enormous efforts of the multilateral system we continue to face armed clashes, destabilizing military escalations, manifestations of hate speech at the highest political level, including in our immediate neighbourhood”, Minister Mnatsakanyan noted.

In this regard, the Foreign Minister of Armenia emphasized the importance of the Council of Yerevan Summit, dedicated to the promotion of the values ​​of "Living Together” which was the call of Yerevan's Francophonie Summit, and which stipulates that the values ​​of peace, solidarity and humanism defining the ideology of "living together" in the francophone territory represent common goodness and wealth, and must be maintained by all means. The Minister added that "this is clearly an important dimension of ​​cooperation between the United Nations and La Francophonie, where our visions and goals are merging with each other."

Concluding his speech, Minister Mnatsakanyan reiterated Armenia's commitment to promote the cooperation between the two organizations, expressing confidence that due to today's discussion, as well as the joint efforts of the Secretary General of La Francophonie and the UN Secretary General, this cooperation will be further strengthened opening new promising prospects.