An extraordinary session without precedent was held in the National Assembly of the Slovenian Parliament on 9 November, dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Slovenia, organized by the Slovenia-Armenia Friendship Group.

The introductory words were given by Tina Heferle, Vice-President of the National Assembly, Andrej Černigoj, President of the Slovenia-Armenia Friendship Group, Monika Gregorčič, Chair of the Foreign Policy Committee, Stanislav Raščan, State Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovenia. Republic of Armenia to Slovenia Ashot Hovakimian.

The event was also attended by a delegation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, led by the Director of the European Department Tigran Samvelian, and representatives of the Armenian community in Slovenia.

The speakers emphasized that the event is the first such event in the history of the Slovenian Parliament, which best describes the relations between the two countries.

On the occasion of the annual anniversary of the war in Arcah, the Slovenian side expressed condolences for the Armenians killed in the war and emphasized the country’s official position that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict should be resolved through peaceful negotiations under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk co-chair.

In his speech, Ambassador Hovakimian thanked the National Assembly of Slovenia for an exceptional initiative to jointly celebrate the anniversary of the independence of the two countries. The parties expressed their commitment to work for the further development of bilateral relations, including in the parliamentary sphere.

The Ambassador pointed out that the new composition of the Armenia-Slovenia Parliamentary Friendship Group has already been confirmed in the National Assembly of Armenia and expressed hope that effective cooperation would be established between the two groups. After the session, Andrej Černigoj and Ashot Hovakimian made public statements.

In the evening of the same day, a dinner dedicated to the 30th anniversary of Armenia’s independence was held in Rimske Terme. members of the Armenian community. The owner and director of the Rimske Terme resort, our compatriot Valery Arakelov, the Ambassador of the Republic of Armenia to Slovenia Ashot Hovakimian, and the introductory words were given by the President of the Slovenia-Armenia Friendship Group Andrej Černigoj. The guests were shown a video about the tourist possibilities of Armenia, followed by a joint concert of opera singer, soprano Varina Mkrtchyan from Prague and professor of the Zagreb Academy of Music, famous pianist Ruben Dalibaltayan, with brilliant performances of famous Komitas works.