President Serzh Sargsyan receives Speaker of Hellenic Parliament Zoi Konstantopoulou

President Serzh Sargsyan today received Zoi Konstantopoulou, Speaker of the Parliament of the Hellenic Republic.

Serzh Sargsyan welcomed the dignitary and thanked for arriving in Armenia and participating in the events commemorating the Armenian Genocide Centennial which are of great importance for the Armenian people. Availing himself of the opportunity, the Armenian President congratulated Mrs. Konstantopoulou on her election as Speaker of the Hellenic Parliament and expressed confidence that she will use her professional skills and vigor to the maximum extent possible to develop the friendly country of Greece.

President Serzh Sargsyan expressed gratitude to the Greek people and Greek authorities for granting asylum to a part of the Armenians escaped from the Genocide and for giving them the opportunity to preserve their national identity, create and develop. The President praised the fact that the Hellenic Parliament was one of the first to recognize the Armenian Genocide, followed by the passing of the bill against racism and xenophobia, thereby criminalizing the denial of the Armenian Genocide and reaffirming Greece’s commitment to fighting against that gravest crime.

The Speaker of the Hellenic Parliament thanked for the invitation to take part in the crucial events being held in Armenia during these days, the warm hospitality and for Armenia’s great efforts to prevent genocides in the future, as it is honoring the memory of the Armenian Genocide victims. Zoi Konstantopoulou stressed that the Hellenic Parliament and she personally, as an expert in International Criminal Law and Human Rights, is Armenia’s key and reliable ally on the path to the international recognition of the historical justice.

At the meeting, the Armenian President and the Speaker the Hellenic Parliament highly appreciated the Armenian-Greek centuries-old friendship anchored in strong historical and cultural ties and expressed their readiness to make every effort to further enlarge political dialogue, economic, military and cultural ties, as well as to deepen collaboration within the frame of international organizations.

To intensify Armenian-Greek relations, the interlocutors laid special emphasis on the two countries’ parliaments and the parliamentary friendship groups.

The interlocutors also touched upon the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process and the key items on Armenia’s and Greece’s foreign policy agenda.