Peace Bridge Initiative Armenia voices concern over Azerbaijani official’s remarks at monasteries

The members of the Peace Bridge Initiative Armenia have expressed concern over remarks by a top Azerbaijani official to foreign diplomats at ancient Armenian Apostolic monasteries in Karabakh.

During a September 12 visit to Gandzasar and Dadivank in Aghdara and Kalbajar districts, Hikmet Hajiyev, head of the Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Office of the President of Azerbaijan, misrepresented the Armenian Christian monasteries to a group of foreign ambassadors as part of the “Christian heritage of ancient Caucasian Albania.”

Below is the full statement by the Peace Bridge Initiative Armenia:

“The members of the Peace Bridge Initiative Armenia express their concern over recent developments related to the presentation of Armenian cultural heritage during the visit of diplomats to the Gandzasar medieval monastic complex and its adjacent museum. At a time when significant progress has already been made in the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process, and when both societies are expected to continue moving, after decades of conflict, towards a new culture of relations, public statements and actions matter. Recent developments deepen mistrust and create additional space for those who argue that dialogue is meaningless and that efforts to achieve peace are futile. Building peace requires difficult and honest conversations, attention to each other’s concerns, and a conscious effort to avoid actions that may reopen wounds or reinforce hostility. We therefore call on all actors involved in the peace process to act with the responsibility required at this moment and to refrain from statements and actions that may be perceived as unconstructive."