On November 27, the RA Ministry of Diaspora, the Union of Armenians of Russia, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation and the “Imast” (Meaning) Youth Association of Nizhni Novgorod launched the 2^nd Forum for Leaders and Representatives of Armenian Youth Organizations of Armenia, Artsakh and the Diaspora, which is entitled “Future”. The forum has brought together nearly 70 young Armenians from 10 countries around the world.

Among the guests at the inaugural ceremony were government officials, as well as state and public figures from Armenia and the Diaspora.

The inaugural ceremony began with the welcome speech of RA President Serzh Sargsyan read by RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan.

Afterwards, RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan delivered her welcome speech to the attendees. “Dear youth, today, we Armenians face global, foreign and domestic challenges. To resist these challenges, we need to combine our efforts. Diaspora Armenian youth mainly struggle to preserve their Armenian identity. Your key objective must also be to have the will and determination to assume responsibility for the solution to the Armenian Cause and continue to pursue it. Armenian youth need to be competitive. For that, you must first be educated. The 21^st century is the century of knowledge. We don’t have gas or petrol. Our natural wealth is our intellect, which is endless,” the minister said.

In his speech, RA Minister of Sport and Youth Affairs Gabriel Ghazaryan mentioned that it wasn’t by chance that the forum was entitled “Future”. “Our youth are our future. I’m very pleased with the fact that the relationship between Armenia, Artsakh and the Diaspora is very powerful, especially between youth. I’m certain that this forum will lead to expected outcome,” the minister said and urged the youth to be involved in sports and maintain a healthy lifestyle. “You need to set an example and encourage Armenian children to be healthy as well.”

Vice-President of the World Armenian Congress and the Union of Armenians of Russia Aram Sargsyan gave a welcome speech in which he mentioned that the two organizations are entering a new stage and are implementing activities in cooperation with the RA Ministry of Diaspora. “Youth, I would like to advise you to take advantage of the good ideas of Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan as much as you can,” Aram Sargsyan said to the youth and added: “We believe it is important for Armenian youth to feel responsibility for their homeland. You can also help the Homeland advance.”

Ani Mkhitaryan spoke on behalf of the “Imast” (Meaning) Armenian Youth Association of Nizhni Novgorod. In her speech, Mkhitaryan mentioned that the “Future” forum is the result of efforts made over the past year and that the organizers have set quite long-term goals, the major one of which is to help Armenian youth and leaders of Armenia, Artsakh and the Diaspora communicate and consolidate them around pro-Armenian programs.

The forum continues with panel discussions.

Let us add that the key objectives of the forum are to identify and consolidate the potential of young and active Armenians of Armenia, Artsakh and the Diaspora in the fields of science, law, politics, journalism, information technologies, arts, culture and other fields and discuss the opportunity for implementation of their development programs in Armenia, as well as contribute to the preservation of the Armenian identity and language, resist the challenges of assimilation facing youth and strengthen the Armenia-Diaspora partnership and the relations within Armenian communities of the Diaspora.

The forum will continue on November 29 with a visit to Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial Complex and the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute.