President Serzh Sargsyan held a meeting with the leadership of the Ministry of Culture

President Serzh Sargsyan visited today the RA Ministry of Culture. Just like during the visits to other state governing bodies, this time too the President first toured the departments of the Ministry, familiarized with the working conditions and conducted works, and conversed with the employees. Afterwards, the President of Armenia held a working meeting.

At the meeting, the Minister of Culture Hasmik Poghosian presented basic concepts of the RA cultural policies on three main directions: preservation of cultural heritage, development of modern arts, and shaping of the young generation as a consumer of culture. The Deputy Ministers and Head of Staff reported on the works conducted in the areas of their jurisdiction, existing problems and development programs. Deputy Minister Arev Samuelian, particularly, reported on the conducted events and future programs in the area of preservation of cultural heritage – reinforcement of monuments, renovation and restoration, maintenance of museums, libraries and non-material cultural heritage. Another Deputy Minister, Arthur Poghosian reported on the works aimed at the development and dissemination of modern arts. He also spoke about the events aimed at the formation of a competitive field for the creation of cultural production, even development of the marzes of the Republic and steps taken in the area of cultural education and international cooperation. The Head of Staff of the Ministry Sergei Avetissian presented the structure of the staff and its activities, existing problems and steps taken towards the enhancement of work efficiency.

The President of Armenia addressed questions regarding the reports, discussed with the participants of the meeting raised issues and responded to the questions which were related not only to the activities of the Ministry of Culture but also to the domestic and foreign policies of Armenia, including the latest developments in the NK peace process. There was a question on how Serzh Sargsyan would assess his meeting with the President of Azerbaijan in Vienna and if it would be justified to speak about a certain progress in negotiations. The President responded, “I wouldn’t call it progress, however at the conclusion of the meeting, I was asked how I would assess the meeting, and I responded briefly “Normal.” I really see it as normal. It is normal because this meeting probably signifies a new stage of negotiations and a new beginning. We haven’t met for almost two years, which means that high-level negotiations were terminated. I saw Azerbaijani President’s desire to solve the problem, however it’s not enough. We also want to solve it. Personally I want this problem to be solved as soon as possible. But how the President of Azerbaijan wants to solve the conflict and how I want to solve the conflict, that’s the question. I would like to repeat that I assess the meeting positively: we have already directed our Ministers of Foreign Affairs to start in early December a new phase of negotiations based on our new directions. The Co-Chairs will visit the region in December and perhaps the agreement we reached with the President of Azerbaijan on meeting again soon, will be implemented also based on the results of these meetings.”

In the first part of his remarks addressed to the participants of the meeting, the President noted that through the ages our people, very often in very difficult situation, were creating rich cultural heritage. He underscored that today our common task, first of all of the employees of the Ministry of Culture, is to preserve and broadcast that heritage. “It is an extremely difficult, but a huge and gratifying work,” Serzh Sargsyan said and added that activities of the Ministry are becoming more visible by year, more qualified from the professional point of view and more organized. “It is, undoubtedly, a very nice development. One should love one’s job, should know it very well and also should be able to present it properly. With this regard, changes which will take place next year, I believe, will have a positive impact,” the President of Armenia noted.

According to Serzh Sargsyan, special attention should be paid also to the augmentation of the museum collections with new historical artifacts and their propaganda. It should be done in accordance with the international standards. “I think it’s a very important issue. Of course, we must not forget the classics, must not neglect cultural values which, if I may say so, also have “area-shaping” influence. They should have our utmost attention,” the President underscored in his remarks.

The President also urged to make interaction between the Ministry and creative unions more vigorous and noted that although it is not within the scope of the Ministry’s direct responsibilities, nevertheless, that work is also important and necessary.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the President awarded a group of the Ministry employees with the Presidential Letters of Commendation for their diligent and efficient work. Presidential Letters of Commendation were handed to the Advisor to the Minister Vahan Eghiazarian, Deputy Head of the Agency on Preservation of Historical and Cultural Monuments Samvel Musoyan, Deputy Head of the Cultural Programs and Monitoring Department Gayane Nazarian, Head of the External Relations Department Svetlana Sahakian.