Being intelligent and progressive is the main key to success for both big and small countries. President Armen Sarkissian spoke at the special meeting of the authoritative Horasis international centre

The President of the Republic Armen Sarkissian participated in the opening of the special meeting of the authoritative "Horasis" international analytical centre via videolink.

The main topics of the online meeting entitled "Rebuilding Trust" were COVID-19 and the new realities in the world.

Horasis is an independent international think tank, which works with governments and international companies. Horasis Summits are considered to be one of the most influential international platforms, where the heads or representatives of states, governments, international organizations, and businessmen offer solutions to meet global challenges.

In his speech, President Sarkissian noted that the current world is significantly different from what the world was thirty years ago. In this new world, the ways and means of democracy, elections, and politics have changed. "In this new world, coronavirus resulted due to the changing world because everything is faster. We travel much faster, and if there is one person infected with a coronavirus, say, in Malaysia or China, then the next may be in Argentina. This is a world where every politician is evaluated by his electorate every day and even every hour," he said. "Any statement receives an immediate response. This is similar to being re-elected every day; thus, you should be responsible for what you say or decide not every five years but every day. Half of our life is real and material, and the other half is virtual. In many cases, the virtual world is manipulated with fake news by those who are powerful, control the media, and know how to do it."

President Sarkissian also spoke about the war unleashed by Azerbaijan against Artsakh and its consequences. "There are serious difficulties in our country after the war, unleashed by Azerbaijan and supported by Turkey, against the people of Nagorno-Karabakh. The 44-day war caused a crisis inside Armenia."

Touching upon the main topic of discussion, i.e. the rebuilding trust, President Sarkissian noted that now trust must be rebuilt in a completely different world, in the conditions of new realities. President Sarkissian also considered environmental issues as one of the challenges of the future. He said that in order to be successful in the world of rapid changes, it does not matter whether you are a big or a small country. "Being intelligent and successful should not be viewed in the aspect how much money you have or how much your country's GDP is but how advanced you are, and how you look to the future. You may not have much today but if you look to the future, and have vision and a plan, then you will succeed. I think being intelligent and progressive is the main key to success for both big and small countries."