PARIS — Three representatives of the Armenian army participated in France’s annual Bastille Day parade on the Champs Elysées, Nouvelles d’Armenie reports.
Representatives of about 80 countries were invited to participate in the July 14 parade, which marked the start of commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the First World War.
On the occasion of the French National Holiday, President Serzh Sarkisian visited the French Embassy in Armenia. The President congratulated Ambassador Henri Reynaud, the Embassy staff and on their behalf the entire French nation. Serzh Sarkisian also sent a congratulatory message to the President of France François Hollande.
According to Sarkisian’s press office, in his congratulatory message addressed to the French president, the Armenian leader, in particular, stressed that Francois Hollande’s recent official visit to Armenia “gave a new impetus to the high-level political dialogue between Armenia and France and the continuous reinforcement of the friendly ties between our peoples.”
“I am confident that the effective fulfillment of the agreements made during your visit will further stimulate the mutually beneficial Armenian-French cooperation in the trade and economic sphere,” Sarkisian said.
“The atmosphere of mutual trust between our friendly peoples anchored in close historical connections and shared values lays down a firm foundation for making progress in all directions. I am sure that the stable cooperation between Armenia and France both in bilateral and multilateral formats, including within the framework of international organizations, will continue the path of development and progress for the benefit of our peoples.”
Sarkisian also reportedly presented his appreciation to Hollande for “the crucial mission carried out by France as an Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group co-chair country aimed at the peaceful resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and promoting peace and security in the region.”
During his visits to Baku and Yerevan in May Hollande reportedly offered the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan to hold the next round of peace talks on Nagorno-Karabakh in Paris. The offer came amid escalating tensions in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone and along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border where incidents continue to claim human lives. No specific date for a new Armenian-Azerbaijani summit has been announced yet, but international peace brokers hope that it can be held soon.
