I hosted H. E. Mr. Patrik Svensson, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Sweden to Armenia, at the National Assembly.
Embassy of Sweden in Yerevan is very actively working in Armenia and as a representative of a country with exemplary legislation, our meeting with the Ambassador was very important also as a member of the Armenia-Sweden friendship group.
I thanked the Ambassador for directly criticizing the Azerbaijani actions by the representatives of the government and parliament of the Kingdom of Sweden.
I presented the problems facing the 120․000 Artsakh Armenians under siege, emphasizing that the world should recognize the right of the people of the Artsakh Republic to live freely and independently in their homeland, following the example of Kosovo.
We talked about the importance and viability of the mandate of the OSCE Minsk Group for the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. In that regard, I mentioned that Armenia should become the link where the representatives of the USA, France and Russia can sit at the same table and talk about the right of self-determination of the people of Artsakh, because the opposite path means the genocide of the people of Artsakh by Azerbaijan.
The Ambassador expressed his concern about the difficult situation and humanitarian problems created in Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, noting that Sweden supports international efforts to settle the conflict in a stable and peaceful way.
Mr. Svensson also stated that after the September aggression by Azerbaijan, he was in Jermuk and personally saw that not only military but also civil infrastructures were targeted.
Both the Ambassador and I simultaneously noted that Armenia has no alternative to develop through democracy, and Sweden is ready to invest all efforts for the development of democracy in Armenia.
The Ambassador also welcomed the active and important activity of the Standing Committee on Protection of Human Rights and Public Affairs, and presented the regional programs implemented by Sweden.
Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Protection of Human Rights and Public Affairs, nonpartisan Taguhi Tovmasyan