President Vahagn Khachaturyan visited the Pázmány Péter Catholic University

President of the Republic Vahagn Khachaturyan, who is on an official visit to Hungary, visited the Pázmány Péter Catholic University.

At the entrance to the University, President of Hungary Katalin Novák and Rector of the University Géza Kuminetz welcomed President Vahagn Khachaturyan.

Welcoming those present, President Khachaturyan said:

"It is a great honor for me to be in this educational institution with almost 400 years of history. This is not accidental and, moreover, I think it is symbolic, since your university today is one of the symbols of the Armenian-Hungarian historical and cultural ties, serving peculiarly for deepening the centuries-old friendship and cooperation between our two nations.

As a result of the cooperation agreement signed between the Pázmány Péter Catholic University and the Armenian State Pedagogical University on March 23, 2016, the Department of Armenian Studies was established at the Institute of History of Pázmány University. It was a truly historic event aimed at the development of Armenian traditions, the origins of which were Hungarian historians of Armenian origin Kristóf Szongott, Govrik Gergely, Ávedik Lukács, armenologists Edmond Schutz, Ēva Gevorgyan-Bagi, Pal Salmashi, Piroshka Kraichir.

And today these traditions are developing as a result of the daily efforts and scientific activities of the head of the Department of Armenian Studies, Dr. Balint Kovacs. Today, 45 Armenian students from different countries are studying at the Pázmány Péter Catholic University. Most of them receive a scholarship from the Hungarian government, and the other part from the Galust Gulbenkyan Foundation.

I was pleased to learn that one of the 13 laureates of this year's "Pro Cultura Minoritatum Hungariae" award, dedicated to the national minorities of Hungary, is Dr. Kovacs, who was awarded for his Armenological research, scientific work on the cultural heritage of the Armenian Catholic Church and the founding of the Department of Armenian Studies at Pázmány Péter University.

Dear colleagues,

The important cornerstone of the development of every nation is education and investment in education. And one of the foundations for the development of interstate relations is the development of scientific-educational, historical and cultural ties between the countries. In the context of the improving relations between Armenia and Hungary, it is of particular importance not only to popularize the rich historical past existing between the two countries, the Armenian historical colony of Hungary and its cultural heritage, the lives and activities of prominent Armenian military and public officials, writers, artists who have made a significant contribution to the history of Hungary, but also the creation and development of programs, aimed at the present day and the future of our countries. And in this case, the Armenian national autonomy in Hungary, with central, city and regional structures, plays its irreplaceable role. I also attach importance to the activities of public organizations, among which I would single out the "Armenia-Hungary" cultural relations and cooperation company operating in Armenia since 1968.

In fact, there is great potential for bilateral development not only in the humanitarian, but also in almost all fields of science, especially in the fields of information technology, artificial intelligence, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and other fields, where both Armenians and Hungarians have significant achievements on international platforms. I attach importance to the exchange of information about all this and the development of programs not only between government structures, but also between various agencies, educational institutions, public organizations, scientific centers with the involvement of a variety of international instruments.

Once again, I would like to express my gratitude to the leadership of Pázmány Péter Catholic University for the support of the Department of Armenian Studies, as well as to the higher-education teaching staff of the University's Institute of History headed by Dr. Oze Sándor and the entire staff of the Department of Armenian Studies for their tireless daily work".

During the visit to the university, a signing ceremony was also held on the amendment of the agreement on international cooperation signed between Yerevan State Pedagogical University and Pázmány Péter Catholic University of Budapest, which was signed by Rectors Srbui Gevorgyan and Géza Kuminetz.