The Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a reception devoted to the launch of a new phase of the EU support program for the Diplomatic School on July 1^st.

The event brought together deputies of the National Assembly, the rectors of the Diplomatic School’s partnering universities, Ambassadors accredited to Armenia, representatives of international organizations and graduates of the Diplomatic School.

In his welcoming remarks, RA Minister of Foreign Affairs Edward Nalbandyan attached importance to the activities of the Diplomatic School in preparing highly qualified diplomats and mentioned that only three years after its opening, the Diplomatic School has turned into a reputable educational institution that offers high-quality professional education for those who aspire to join Armenia’s diplomatic service, as well as training programs for diplomats pursuing their careers and the employees of foreign relations departments of other institutions.

“Over the past three years, nearly 80 diplomats have graduated from the Diplomatic School, of which 41 are currently working at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The launch of this new program affirms that our international partners positively assess the achievements of the Diplomatic School,” said the foreign minister.

Minister Nalbandyan expressed gratitude to the European Union, all the partnering organizations and countries that have contributed to the development and success of the Diplomatic School, as well as all the high-ranking officials, experts and guest lecturers who have made their contributions to the educational process over the past couple of years.

In his speech, Head of the EU Delegation to Armenia Trayan Hristea touched upon the past of the Diplomatic School and underlined that in his short term, he has achieved rather tangible results and that the new EU-funded program is the token of appreciation of that.

The new EU-funded program launched in May 2013 will support the building of administrative and institutional capacities of the MFA Diplomatic School. The program will also include several additional informative and extracurricular activities and instructive visits to European and international organizations stationed in Brussels and Vienna, reports the RA MFA press service to “Hayern Aysor”.