RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan received Catholicos Patriarch of Catholic Armenians of the House of Cilicia Nerses Petros XIX Tarmuni.

The sides touched upon the provisions stated in the Pan-Armenian Declaration adopted by the State Commission on Coordination of Events Dedicated to the 100^th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide and the historic significance of those provisions, as well as attached importance to the fact that the Declaration was read near the Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial by RA President Serzh Sargsyan himself, stressing the pan-national significance of the document even more.

The Catholicos-Patriarch expressed his satisfaction with the activities that the Ministry of Diaspora carries out for preservation of the Armenian identity in general and particularly stressed the importance of the programs and events aimed at preserving the Armenian identity in the Armenian Diaspora. The Holy Father said: “You are always alert to take care of the needs of the Armenian Diaspora.” The Catholicos-Patriarch attached importance to the existence and activities of Armenian schools abroad and mentioned that it is impossible to preserve the Armenian identity abroad without Armenian schools and the Armenian language.

The Minister of Diaspora expressed gratitude to the guest of honor for his visit and the close collaboration, praised the fruitful activities of the Armenian Catholic Church for the preservation and the development of Armenian culture and mentioned that all Catholic Armenian clergymen convey the air and spirit of Armenians to Diaspora Armenians with their words and actions. The minister mentioned that the Patriarchate can help expand the programs of the RA Ministry of Diaspora for homeland recognition and preservation of the Armenian language and identity and help Diaspora Armenian youth show more active participation in those programs.

The sides touched upon the upcoming conference to be held at the Monastery of Zmmar where there will be studies on the materials related to the Armenian Genocide and preserved in the archives of the Vatican, in countries of the Middle East and in the Americas. The sides also discussed issues on organizing the conference.

They also touched upon issues related to the Divine Liturgy that Pope Francis will be serving at the St. Peter Temple of the Vatican on the occasion of the 100^th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide on April 12, 2015.