PRESS RELEASE
ARMENIAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE OF CANADA
3401 Olivar-Asselin
Montréal, Québec
H4J 1L5
Tél. (514) 334-1299 Fax (514) 334-6853

13 December 2004

Contacts: Shant Karabajak 514-334-1299
Roupen Kouyoumdjian 514-336-7095
Aris Babikian 416-497-8972

Armenian delegation meet’s prime minister and senior ministers

Toronto- Representatives of the Armenian National Committee of Canada
(ANCC), the Armenian National Committee of Toronto (ANCT) and the
Armenian Revolutionary Federation Youth Organization (ARF-YOC), attended
a fund-raising reception, on December 2, organized by the Liberal Party
of Canada. The guest speaker was the Prime Minister of Canada, the Right
Hon. Paul Martin. In his speech, the prime minister touched upon the
recent visit of U.S. President George W. Bush to Canada, Canada-U.S.
bilateral relations, Canada ‘ s commitment to human rights around the
world, the Darfur crisis, the Israel-Palestine peace process, the
upcoming Ukrainian, Palestinian, and Iraqi elections. The prime minister
emphasized that Canada, as a middle power, has an important role to play
in the above issues.

During the reception ANCC, ANCT and ARF-YOC delegates met the prime
minister and Minister of National Defense, Bill Graham; Minister of
Human Resources and Skills Development, Joseph Volpe; Minister of
International Trade, James Peterson; Minister of Citizenship and
Immigration, Judy Sgro; Minister of State (families and caregivers),
Tony Ianno. The establishment of a Canadian embassy in Armenia and the
inclusion of Armenia in the Canadian International Development Agency’s
(CIDA) projects were highlighted by the Armenian delegates. The
ministers promised to follow up on the issues raised during the talks.

The large number of our delegates and their participation in the talks
was greatly appreciated by reception organizers.

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