From February 1–3, Aram Vardevanyan and I participated in the International Religious Freedom Summit, where we presented the pressures exerted against the Armenian Apostolic Church in Armenia and once again raised urgent concerns regarding our compatriots detained in Baku, as well as the preservation of the spiritual and cultural heritage remaining in Artsakh.
We were honored to discuss these issues in a separate meeting with the Summit’s Co-Chairs and globally recognized leaders in the defense of religious freedom, Mr. Sam Brownback and Ms. Katrina Lantos Swett.
Sam Brownback is an American statesman and diplomat, widely recognized as one of the world’s leading advocates for religious freedom. He previously served as a U.S. Senator and Governor of Kansas, and from 2018 to 2021, under President Trump’s administration, as the United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom.
Katrina Lantos Swett is an American human rights advocate and political leader, and a recognized expert in international religious freedom. She is a former Chair of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) and the daughter of the late Tom Lantos, a seminal figure in the field of human rights. She also serves as President of the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice, established to carry forward her father’s legacy.
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