On July 17, under the leadership of Minister of Diaspora of the Republic of Armenia Hranush Hakobyan, the participants of the “Diaspora” Summer School Program visited the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia where they were received by Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Eduard Sharmazanov.

Greeting the attendees, Sharmazanov highly appreciated the pro-national efforts of the teachers aimed at preserving the Armenian community within their respective communities of the Diaspora and stated that it is an honor for him to work with Minister Hranush Hakobyan since the Minister always has bright ideas.

Touching upon the proposal to make Russian a state language in Armenia that was made during the meeting of Speaker of the RA National Assembly Ara Babloyan and President of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Vyacheslav Volodin, the Deputy Speaker of the RA National Assembly emphasized that the only state language in the Republic of Armenia is Armenian, which is a constitutional norm.

Eduard Sharmazanov expressed certainty that the objective of Armenians abroad is to preserve the Armenian identity, while the objective of Armenians in Armenia is a pro-Armenian solution to the Artsakh issue. The Deputy Speaker urged the Diaspora Armenian teachers to make Artsakh recognizable in the world with their daily activities.

Talking about the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Eduard Sharmazanov emphasized the following: “Armenia supports a peaceful settlement of the conflict, but never through unilateral concessions. The victory of Artsakh is the collective victory of the Armenian nation.”

The Deputy Speaker urged everyone to stand united as one and show that the guarantee of the success of the Armenian people is their unity.

Eduard Sharmazanov also briefly presented the functions of the RA National Assembly, the arrangement of political parties within parliament and the peculiarities of the transition to a parliamentary system of governance following the reforms made in the Constitution.

Expressing gratitude for the cordial reception, Minister Hranush Hakobyan stated that such meetings make the “Diaspora” Summer School Program more substantial. She presented the five-year history of the summer school program, the goals of the program and the courses. “The program is a success, and evidence of that is the growing number of participants. Dear participants, a brilliant example for you is the young and talented deputy parliamentary speaker Eduard Sharmazanov, who has managed to achieve great success in the Homeland with his professional and political capabilities. Our country is small only in terms of size, but we are 10 million in number. We will see the powerful Armenia of our dreams sooner with your help and direct participation,” the Minister said.

The Minister highlighted the fact that Armenians in Armenia and abroad will be celebrating the 100^th anniversary of the First Republic of Armenia and the 2,800^th anniversary of Yerevan in 2018. “I am certain that each of you will do your best to celebrate the anniversaries very well in your respective countries of residence and that all Armenians will be looking towards the Homeland,” the Minister added.

During a question-and-answer, the teachers raised several issues related to the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the prevention of emigration, the strategic programs targeted at the creation of jobs and promotion of repatriation, the participation of Diaspora Armenians in the political processes and more. Eduard Sharmazanov gave exhaustive answers to all the questions.