Federation of Armenian Organisations in The Netherlands (FAON)
Address: Weesperstraat 91 – 2574 VS The Hague, The Netherlands
Website: www.faon.nl
E-mail: info@faon.nl
Press Release
Chairman of Artsakh Parliament Ashot Ghoulian met Dutch MPs
The Hague, 5 March 2019 – On 5 March 2019 a delegation from Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) with Chairman of National Assembly of Artsakh Mr Ashot Ghoulian and deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Mrs Armine Aleksanyan, together with FAON chairman Mr Mato Hakhverdian and secretary of the FAON Mrs Inge Drost, participated in a Dutch parliament hearing about Artsakh.
At the parliamentary meeting were present also Mrs Irina Beglaryan, Mr Gegham Stepanyan from Artsakh and Mrs Karine Mkrttsjan as translator.
The hearing took place in a so-called “special procedure” of standing committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands. It was requested in a letter by the Federation of Armenian Organisations in the Netherlands (FAON) to raise awareness for the situation in the Republic of Artsakh. The meeting was organised and chaired by the Member of Parliament Sadet Karabulut (Socialist Party). Dutch parliamentarians of 5 factions were present, among others Mr Joel Voordewind (Christian Union), who is the vice chairman of standing committee on Foreign Affairs.
After warm welcoming words by Mrs Karabulut, Mr Hakhverdian introduced the guests from Artsakh. He referred to earlier occasions, when the Armenian community in the Netherlands brought the situation in Artsakh to the attention of the Dutch Parliament and government in recent years, with the submission of petitions, letters and a special hearing in 2015 with participation of FAON and a delegation of European Friends of Armenia including Armenian MP Mr Tevan Poghosyan.
In his introduction Mr Ghoulian thanked Mrs Karabulut and her colleagues for their interest for Artsakh and presented the current situation in his country and what has led to it in the last 31 years. The Republic of Artsakh is convinced that the solution of the conflict with Azerbaijan can only be reached in a peaceful way. He also gave a brief account of the democratic development in Artsakh. He mentioned that 6 parliamentary and 5 presidential elections have been organised during past 25 years. He invited the Dutch parliamentarians to visit Artsakh, like their colleagues from other European countries.
After Mr Ghoulian’s introduction the Dutch MPs asked questions about the situation in Artsakh and the possible solution of the conflict. Mr Ghoulian answered all questions and talked about the long going peace process led by the co-chairs of OSCE Minsk Group. He explained the obstacles, which exist on the way for a fair solution of the conflict. He also pointed how the Netherlands with its important political and economical possibilities could effectively support the peace process. He spoke about the difficulties that Artsakh is facing for the solution of the economical problems. According to Mr Ghoulian following the recent contacts of new Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashynian and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliev the situation at the boarder was relatively calm in the last few months.
The meeting took place in a friendly atmosphere.
On 27 February 2019 the Joint Armenian Organisations in the Netherlands (SAO) commemorated the pogroms of Sumgait by a protest march started from the Hague Peace Palace to the Azerbaijan Embassy with a rally in front the Embassy of Azerbaijan. On the same day the SAO submitted a letter addressed to the Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Stef Blok and discussed the situation of Artsakh with director of Europe Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mrs Erica Schouten.
Federation of Dutch Armenian Organizations • FAON
Press release
Meeting of Artsakh Parliament Speaker Ashot Ghulyan with Dutch MPs
The Hague, March 5, 2019. – 2019 On March 5, the Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Artsakh, Mr. Ashot Ghulyan and the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mrs. Armine Aleksanyan, accompanied by the President of the Federation of Dutch Armenian Organizations (FAON), Mr. Mato Hakhverdyan and the Secretary, Ms. Inga Drost, had a meeting with the deputies of the Parliament of the Netherlands to discuss issues related to Artsakh.
Mrs. Irina Beglaryan, Mr. Gegham Stepanyan and translator Mrs. Karine Mkrtchyan were also present at the meeting.
This session was organized within the framework of the so-called “special procedure” of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs of the Dutch Parliament. In order to raise awareness of the situation in Artsakh, the Federation of Dutch Armenian Organizations (FAON) appealed to the parliamentary committee to have a direct hearing with high-ranking representatives of Artsakh. The session was organized and presided over by Ms. Sadet Karabulut (Socialist Party). Deputies from 5 factions of the Dutch Parliament were present, including the vice-chairman of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Joel Vorverndinde (Christian Union).
After Ms. Karabulut’s words of warm welcome, Mato Hakhverdyan introduced the guests of Artsakh to the deputies. He referred to the past relations with the Parliament related to the Artsakh issue, noting that the Dutch-Armenian community has repeatedly appealed to the Parliament of the Netherlands by presenting manifestos and brought the situation of the Artsakh conflict to the attention of the Parliament and the government, and in 2015 At the initiative of the Dutch-Armenian Federation, the Permanent Commissioner of Foreign Affairs of the Parliament listened to the information presented by the European friends of Armenia and RA NA MP Tevan Poghosyan about the Artsakh issue and current problems.
In his introductory speech, Mr. Ghulyan thanked Mrs. Karabulut and her colleagues for showing interest in Artsakh and presented the current situation of the country, as well as the successes achieved in Artsakh over the past 31 years. The Republic of Artsakh is convinced that the solution to the conflict can be achieved only in a peaceful way. He also briefly told about the democratic development process of Artsakh. He mentioned that 6 parliamentary and 5 presidential elections were organized during the last 25 years. He invited the Dutch parliamentarians, following the deputies of other European countries, to visit Artsakh.
After Mr. Ghulyan’s speech, the Dutch deputies asked questions about the situation in Artsakh and possible solutions to the conflict. Mr. Ghulyan answered all the questions and spoke about the long-term peace process led by the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group. He explained the obstacles that exist on the way to a fair resolution of the conflict. He also emphasized that the Netherlands with its important political and economic opportunities can effectively support the peace process. He also referred to the difficulties that exist in solving economic problems in Artsakh. According to Mr. Ghulyan, after several contacts between the new Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, and the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, the situation along the line of contact has been relatively calm in the last few months.
The meeting took place in a friendly atmosphere.
2019 on February 27, the Dutch-Armenian cooperating organizations honored the memory of the victims of the Sumgait pogroms, marched in protest from the Peace Palace in The Hague to the Embassy of Azerbaijan, in front of which a rally-demonstration took place. On the same day, Dutch-Armenian cooperating organizations addressed the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, Mr. Steph Blok, with a letter about the Artsakh issue, and discussed the Artsakh situation with the Director of the European Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ms. Erika Schouten.
Ashot Ghoulian met Dutch MPs
Title: Ashot Ghoulian met Dutch MPs