On Feb. 26, the Union of Cinematographers of Lithuania and the Embassy of Armenia organized the screening of Vardan Hovhannisyan’s documentary History of People in War and Peace. The event attended by representatives of the Seymas of Lithuania and different government agencies, well-known journalists and public figures, historians, military officials and members of the Armenian community began with opening remarks by President of the Union of Cinematographers of Lithuania, famous director Gitis Lukshas, who mentioned that the film is close to Lithuanians’ hearts, is sincere and necessary and can in no way be viewed as official, unilateral advocacy.

In his speech, Armenia’s Ambassador to Lithuania Ara Ayvazyan said: “From time to time, every society, nation and country has to choose between war and peace. Our generation was forced to see war in order to achieve the peace that is fragile.” Armenia’s Ambassador mentioned that the day of the film screening coincides with the 26^th anniversary of the Sumgait pogroms by which Azerbaijan preferred to solve its issues through war and anti-Armenian propaganda. Ambassador Ayvazyan underlined the fact that the Baltic peoples had clearly expressed their support to the right of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh to self-determination amid the democratic processes taking place in the former USSR.

Reminding that a Friendship Group with the Republic of Artsakh was established within the Seymas of Lithuania on the same day a year ago and attaching importance to the fundamentality of the members of the Seymas and their loyalty to the values that had united Lithuanians and Armenians in the restoration of our statehood, Armenia’s Ambassador presented the Group’s President Dalia Kuodite the congratulatory message of Chairman of the NKR National Assembly Ashot Ghulyan in that regard. The film screening was followed by a speech by director Vardan Hovhannisyan, who also answered several questions concerning the gathered.