On January 9, RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan received Australian-Armenian public and cultural figure, Vice-Chairman of the Diocesan Council of Australia and New Zealand, Chair of the Minorities State Commission and Chairman of the Anti-Discrimination Board Stepan Kerkyasharian.

Greeting the guest, the Minister of Diaspora wished him a Happy New Year and Merry Armenian Christmas and attached importance to his longstanding efforts for the preservation of the Armenian identity abroad. “All active Armenian organizations of Australia need to come together and make unified decisions on pan-Armenian priorities, including the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Armenia’s security, the recognition and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide and the integration of Syrian-Armenians. If we can unite around those issues within the communities, we will be able to create a Pan-Armenian Council that will ensure the Armenian Diaspora’s participation in the solution to pan-Armenian issues and further strengthen the bonds between Armenia and the Diaspora. Armenia must always have a presence within every Armenian community,” the Minister particularly mentioned.

Stepan Kerkyasharian expressed gratitude for the cordial reception and the thorough conversation.

The sides discussed the circles of cooperation and indicated several organizational issues and issues related to activities.