President Vahagn Khachaturyan received the Minister of Culture of Italy Gennaro Sangiuliano

President Vahagn Khachaturyan received the delegation led by the Minister of Culture of the Republic of Italy Gennaro Sangiuliano. The ESCS Minister Zhanna Andreasyan, the MFA Deputy Minister Paruyr Hovhannisyan and the RA Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Italy Tsovinar Hambardzumyan were also present at the meeting.

Welcoming the guest and his delegation, President Khachaturyan said: “The centuries-old friendly ties between our two peoples have had their role in the establishment of the relations between our countries. One of the most important components of this process was culture, cultural similarities, characteristics and the civilizational values we adopted, which are also culture-based. All that has had its impact on our political cooperation based on mutual trust.

I am sure that your visit will definitely contribute to the development of our relations, will be a trigger for generating new ideas and will provide opportunities in the field of cultural cooperation.”

Expressing his gratitude for the reception, the Minister of Culture of Italy noted: “Italy is Armenia’s friend, we are tied by friendly bonds and relations of thousands of years. I am here today so that we can strengthen our relations and cooperation even further. Like all the other foundations, culture can be a strong pillar for bringing it all to life.”

During the meeting, the sides discussed the opportunities for deepening Armenian-Italian cultural ties, implementing bilateral events and applying Italy’s best practice of cultural policy. They touched upon applying the knowledge and skills of Italian specialists in the restoration of historical and cultural monuments and works of art in Armenia.

During the conversation, the President also spoke of the threat of demolition of the Armenian historical and cultural heritage by Azerbaijan and emphasized the fact that these cultural values are monuments of not only the culture of Armenia but also world culture, and their destruction is unacceptable.

The sides also touched upon the security issues in the South Caucasus and the threat of a humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh because of the blockade of the Lachin Corridor. President Vahagn Khachaturyan noted that Armenia adheres to the position of establishing good relations with our neighbouring states and ensuring sustainable and everlasting peace in our region.