Serzh Sargsyan to visit Switzerland in May
Armenia is ready to deepen relations with Switzerland, Serzh Sargsyan said Thursday during an official dinner in honor of Swiss President Micheline Calmy-Rey.
"Armenia seeks to strengthen ties with Switzerland and the desire is based on self-evident verities.
Switzerland has been able to become a truly democratic country with powerful economy. The country has been able to address its socio-economic problems in the best possible way. For your people and for the authorities of Switzerland universal values are precious and in many cases you take no notice of the fact that while adhering to these values you may have certain difficulties. In this regard, the Armenian people are, certainly, grateful to the government, people, and the Parliament of Switzerland for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide which verified your stance regarding the crime," said Serzh Sargsyan.
"Armenia seeks to deepen economic relations with the Swiss Confederation and intensify cultural exchanges. In this regard, we highlight the cooperation both in bilateral and multilateral formats," he said.
Micheline Calmy-Rey said that with her Armenian counterpart they dwelt on the high-level relations between the two countries.
"Switzerland expeditiously provided assistance to Armenia in the wake of the 1988 earthquake and continues to implement cooperation programs in this country. Tomorrow, I am leaving for Gyumri to pay tribute to that cooperation," she said.
"I would like to hail the work of our diplomatic representation in Armenia. However, the Armenian-Swiss relations are not limited by the contacts between the officials. Switzerland is home to many thousands of people of the Armenian descent. The population of Switzerland has great acclaim for the Armenians. It should be noted that Armenia has properly acknowledged activities of the Swiss prominent figures such as Jacob Kuntzler, who had provided refuge to the thousands of Armenian orphans. Manifestations of friendship between our two countries are many.
I would also like to stress the importance which your government attaches to the International Organization of Francophony and which this year is chaired by Switzerland. I have learned that in the framework of francophony, Armenia has organized the largest number of events in the world. I believe, it's an impressive evidence of Armenia's strong adherence to the values of multilingualism and multiculturalism. I would also like to congratulate Armenia on receiving the Honorary Guest status at the Book Fair in Geneva. This will allow the writers and publishers of Armenia to bring their works to more people," said Micheline Calmy-Rey.
The Swiss President invited her Armenian counterpart to Switzerland in early May.
