THE FRIENDLY RELATIONS BETWEEN ARMENIAN AND GREEK NATIONS UNDERLIE COOPERATION
Yerkir.am
May 19, 2006
In October 2005 ARF’s Structure in Ijevan launched an initiative
of cooperation between Ijevan and one of the cities in Greece. The
cooperation would stem from the two cities becoming sister cities.
The Mayor of the Greek city of Nicia Benedatos Stelios appreciates
greatly the role of the Armenian community in Nicia and agreed to
cooperate. The cooperation agreement was reached with support from
ARF’s local structures in Ijevan and Nicia.
Last year the Armenian delegation headed by the Mayor of Ijevan
Varuzhan Nersissian visited Nicia. This year the Mayor of Nicia
visited Ijevan and had a series of meetings. “Didn’t you change your
mind after you saw Ijevan?” someone asked joking.
The Mayor of Nicia answered that he admired the nature of Ijevan
and the warm and kind welcome of the local people and will be back
to Ijevan.
Representative of ARF’s Supreme Body Armen Rustamian and member of
the Supreme Body Hrach Tadevossian met Mayor Benedatos Stelios at
ARF’s Simon Vratsian Center on May 16. Both sides agreed that the
friendly relations between the Armenian and Greek nations underlie
cooperation this cooperation effort.
Deputy Mayor of Nicia, representative of ARF’s Varandian Committee
Zaven Gnuni also attended the meeting. Welcoming the guests in Armenia,
Armen Rustamian stressed the centuries-old friendship between the
Armenian and Greek nations noting that the Greek people are received
in Armenia not as partners but as brothers.
Rustamian believes when such friendly relations were established
between Armenia and countries where there are Aremnian communities no
one believed such ties could work. “Today it seems that a competition
has started,” Rustamian noted adding that Armenia and Greece have
a great potential and the historical connections between the two
countries provide for such a great scope of cooperation that it is
not fully used today.
Through such cooperation initiatives and thanks to Armenians living
in Greece connections between the two countries will yield their
results. Rustamian stressed the importance of cooperation between
the Armenian and Greek political leaders in the European structures.
The Mayor of Nicia shared his impressions of Ijevan and
noted that there is potential for cooperation between the two
cities. “Friendly relations have already been established between
the two municipalities. They should be strengthened not only through
mutual visits but also through joint projects in different spheres,”
the Mayor of Nicia noted stressing the importance of the Armenian
community in his city.