YEREVAN, 22 DECEMBER, ARMENPRESS. The prestigious BBC TV and Radio Service has prepared a special report on the nearly 12,000 Syrian-Armenians having moved to their historic homeland due to the Syrian war. “It’s no surprise that many of them wish to settle in Armenia. They are greeted not as migrants, but as repatriates. The Syrian-Armenians receive many privileges in terms of education and healthcare,” BBC’s reporter mentions, according to “ArmenPress”. “They would kidnap us and ask for ransoms. My father told us it was time for us to leave the country, but I had doubts until the day I was called to military service from both sides, and that was a problem because when you are called from both sides, you have to do take action,” Shant Khayalian says. Although he isn’t earning as much as he used to earn in Syria by selling organic butter in Armenia, he intends to settle in Armenia. 

Since the start of the civil war, Armenia has opened its doors for thousands of Armenians displaced as a result of the Syrian war. The government has provided them with entry visas through an accelerated procedure, an interim and long-term residency status, opportunities for citizenship, and is examining the appeals for shelter quickly. Syrian-Armenian can receive passports of the Republic of Armenia from Syria as well. “As the President of the Republic of Armenia mentioned, “Armenians can’t be refugees in their homeland”. This is one of the main reasons for facilitating the procedure of issuing passports to Syrian-Armenians,” says representative of Armenia’s Ministry of Diaspora Lusine Stepanyan.