Lusine Avanesyan
Public Radio of Armenia
Stepanakert

“Artsakh is not only the stronghold of Armenia, but also of Europe,” member of the Flemish Parliament Karim Van Overmeire said in Stepanakert.

A delegation of Flemish MPs headed by Karl Vanlouwe, are in Artsakh for a two-day visit.

Within the framework of a two-day visit to Artsakh, members of the delegation visited the Stepanakert memorial, held meetings at the National Assembly and were hosted by Head of the Artsakh Diocese, Archbishop Pargev Martirosyan. Later today they are expected to meet with NKR President Bako Sahakyan. The delegation is accompanied by EAFJD President Kaspar Karampetian and Armenian MP Tevan Poghosyan.

During a meeting at the National Assembly today the Flemmish MPs referred to the situation in the Middle East, the new wave of violence against Christians, which, Karim Van Overmeire said, reminds of the Armenian Genocide.

Speaker of the NKR National Assembly Ashot Ghulyan said “people in Artsakh strongly believe that democracy is the basis of freedom, justice and peace; those were the principles leading up to the declaration of independence and remain the guidelines for the Artsakh authorities today.”

Referring to the preservation of the national identity of Artsakh and the peoples’ struggle, Karl Vanlouwe, First Vice President of the Belgian Senate, said: “I cannot compare the Flemish peaceful struggle for identity with the complex situation created in Nagorno Karabakh. It is hard to imagine that such a meeting would be organized around thirty years ago only because there was a war going on in here.”

Ward Kennes noted in his speech that they rely upon the OSCE Minsk Group and hope the negotiations under their auspices will result in a stable and lasting solution.

The Flemish and Artsakh MPs discussed the perspectives of collaboration in the fields of education and science, as well as decentralized cooperation.