“We received information from the US Department of State that Armenia joined the International Religious Freedom Alliance on June 12th. What is the mission of this platform, what issues does it aim to resolve, and what are the conditions for cooperation within this platform?” Bright Armenia deputy Ani Samsonyan asked the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, in parliament.
The minister replied that the issue of religious freedom continues to remain critical for Armenian foreign policy within the framework of human rights. “We are working with many colleagues on the issue of religious freedom. This platform unites several countries that are working to resolve this issue within their own agencies. We have our agencies. The issue of discrimination is one of the most vulnerable and disrespecting people’s rights can lead to mass violations and mass extermination. You know that genocide prevention is also an important issue for us. Secondly, we are a people who have had a lot of experience living among and respecting other religions. We have lived among other faiths in different societies. We also have our diaspora. This platform will give us the opportunity to work with our allies to create programs that will improve the conditions of religious minorities, different projects, and different measures for improving dialogue. We will lead with our priorities in mind, as well as the fact that working with our colleagues who are also a part of this alliance will be more effective.”
Samsonyan responded, “It is great that we are strengthening our relationship with the USA on different platforms and especially while working on topics such as ethnic minorities and genocide prevention. But there are also worries that this platform can become an anti-Chinese platform, which has been proven by different statements. There is some worry that this could harm Armenian-Chinese relations.”
The minister said that there is nothing to worry about due to the fact that the alliance will not be making such decisions. There will not even be anything to vote on. Each country will be presenting its own plans and suggesting ways in which they can be implemented. “One of Armenia’s main principles in foreign policy is that w will never cooperate with one ally at the expense of another. It is impossible for us to become a part of a project that will harm our cooperation with other nations.”
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