On July 7, RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan received Patriarchal Vicar of the St. Hakobyants Congregation of Jerusalem, His Eminence, Father Archbishop Aris Shirvanian.

Greeting the guest, the minister attached importance to His Holiness Aris’s intention to spend his summer vacation in Armenia and suggested that he participate in the events organized by the RA Ministry of Diaspora.

Accepting the minister’s proposal with gratitude, His Holiness Aris expressed the desire to participate in the conference on “Issues of Convergence between Western Armenian and Eastern Armenian” and ensure the presence of experts from Jerusalem.

The sides touched upon issues on organizing instruction at the Targmanchats and Zharangavorats Schools, the selection of teachers participating in the ministry’s programs and other related issues.

His Holiness informed the minister that the Patriarchate, the Armenian Community and the Armenian National Committee Office of Jerusalem had actively participated in the events dedicated to the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide and had also actively collaborated to organize the events.

Minister Hranush Hakobyan suggested including the issue of digitization of over 4,000 manuscripts and antique books kept at the museum of the St. Hakobyants Monastery of Jerusalem in the agenda in order to avoid dangers in the future.

The sides also discussed several other issues related to preservation of the Armenian identity.