Serzh Sargsyan Makes Toast During Official Dinner: I Believe That We

SERZH SARGSYAN MAKES TOAST DURING OFFICIAL DINNER: I BELIEVE THAT WE CAN BUILD A WORLD OF SOLIDARITY AND TOLERANCE

15:39 | April 24,2015 | Politics

On behalf of the President if the Republic of Armenia, Chairman of the
State Commission on Coordination of the Events for the Commemoration
of the 100th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, a state dinner was
held today at the Presidential Palace in honor of the senior-level
delegations and heads of state who have arrived in Armenia.During
the dinner, Serzh Sargsyan made a toast.

“Distinguished Presidents;

Honorable representatives of states and international organizations;

Your Holiness Eminences; Esteemed Guests;

My Fellow Armenians;

Words are not sometimes incapable of conveying emotions. Today is a
case in point.

Thank you for coming Armenia from near and from far, for coming to
stand by our side, for coming to reaffirm that nothing is forgotten
and that history is yet to be told. You have come to distinguish
the truth from lies, so as to convey the true lessons of history to
generations to come.

Ladies and Gentlemen; I refuse to believe that history controls
our destiny. I believe we craft our destiny, and we are capable of
changing the development course of humanity.

I refuse to believe that transitory interests can shatter humanity’s
dreams of freedom and peace cherished for centuries. Morality and
conscience are inherent to our essence: otherwise, we would not have
developed international humanitarian law, we would not have committed
ourselves to universal moral values, we would not have humanitarian
organizations, and finally, we would not be assembling here today.

Human beings are indeed creative. Humans have created advanced
technology and the worldwide web. But today, more than ever, humanity
needs love, tolerance and kindness, humanity and humaneness, so that
our children do not experience what past generations did, or what we
have witnessed in the modern day.

I believe that we have an exceptional opportunity, using the very
tools we conceived, the numerous structures for cooperation, the
unprecedented means of communication, and the international system
of law to improve the existing arrangements for global peace, to
reinforce the foundation of morality undermined throughout history,
and to prevent any future atrocity against humanity.

Dear colleagues; I believe that we can build a world of solidarity
and tolerance, where national, racial, and religious identity will
be nothing but a source of pride. Each one of us ought to bear our
share of responsibility in this process, as we are all irreversibly
interconnected in a world where any boundaries are gradually
disappearing.

Saint Gregory of Narek, recently proclaimed by Pope Francis a Doctor
of the Universal Church, conveyed to us this message a full millennium
ago: “The walk to peace cleanses of sins.”

Hence, let us raise our glasses to peaceful coexistence of all
humankind, to peace that radiates and generates light.”

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress