At his presidential residence, the President of Armenia received Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin, who had already greeted Sarkissian once on 22 January.
President Sarkissian’s staff announced that, referring to Israel’s recognition of the Armenian Genocide at the aforementioned meeting, the President of Armenia considered it important that Israel play a leading role and recognize the Armenian Genocide. Emphasizing that the recognition and condemnation of this shameful page of history should not be conditioned by political expediency, President Sarkissian said that recognition and condemnation are necessary so that such human catastrophes never occur and are never repeated.
As for the prospects of cooperation, President Sarkissian noted that the future lies in modern technologies. He expressed confidence that the two countries can successfully cooperate in this field, and his goal is to establish close ties with Israel’s technological universities.
Two days earlier, after visiting the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, Armenia’s President Armen Sarkissian had also met with Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestinian National Authority. President Sarkissian had expressed his gratitude to the President of the Palestinian National Authority and the government for everything they do for the Armenian Church.
Armen Sarkissian described the holding of this conference dedicated to the 75th anniversary of the Holocaust as historic and believes that it was necessary for the Republic of Armenia to be represented, and that it is also time for Israel to recognize the Armenian Genocide as Genocide.
“A historic commemorative book has been printed on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the Holocaust, in which all participating presidents have presented their message on one page. My message clearly speaks both about the Holocaust and about the Armenian Genocide,” he noted.
