Speaker of Slovak parliament, Ambassador of Armenia honor memories of Armenian Genocide victims

YEREVAN, APRIL 30, ARMENPRESS. The Public TV of the Slovak Republic (RTVS) covered the honoring of the Armenian Genocide victims by the Speaker of the National Council of the Slovak Republic Boris Kollár and the Ambassador of Armenia to Slovakia Armen Papikyan near the khachkar (cross-stone) in memory of the Armenian Genocide victims in Bratislava.

''Slovakia is among the nearly 30 countries that have called the slaughter of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire a genocide. The Speaker of the National Council of Slovakia condemned the forceful keeping of hundreds of Armenians by Azerbaijan. According to the agreement reached in November, 2020, the sides had to exchange all war prisoners. Azerbaijan has failed to do it so far'', ARMENPRESS reports the RTVS said.

Speaker of the National Council of the Slovak Republic Boris Kollár emphasized that it's necessary to pressure Azerbaijan, because according to the agreement, all war prisoners should have been returned, but noted with regret that Azerbaijan has failed to do that so far. ''Unfortunately, Azerbaijan brings forward new and new preconditions for releasing the POWs. Moreover, we are not speaking only about war prisoners, but also civilians, the citizens of Armenia, who are presented as arrested people, but are used by Azerbaijan as hostages. I am confident that the EU should pressure Azerbaijan to put an end to this conflict and all POWs return to their motherland'', Boris Kollár underlined.

Ambassador Armen Papikyan thanked Slovakia, for it is one of the first countries to recognize the Armenian Genocide in 2004. ''Slovakia's position in this issue is very important for us'', the Ambassador said, adding that that position is a clear signal about that such war crimes should be prevented in the future.