Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan participated in the reception organized at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the occasion of New Year and Christmas holidays. The Prime Minister congratulated and sent best wishes to all the employees of the central apparatus of the Foreign Ministry and diplomatic representations of Armenia abroad, foreign diplomats accredited in our country on the occasion of the upcoming holidays.

In his speech, Prime Minister Pashinyan specifically noted:

"Honorable foreign diplomats accredited in Armenia,
Dear employees of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia,
Dear attendees,

First of all, I would like to thank the colleagues and employees of the diplomatic service of the Republic of Armenia for the work done this year and emphasize that one of the goals of the Armenian government in the field of foreign policy continues to be the strengthening of the diplomatic service. We have recorded this several times, sometimes we put tasks in front of the diplomatic service, but the next moment we record that, however, we did not invest all the means, at least in the previous period, so that the diplomatic service fully possesses the tools and levers to solve these tasks.

And I am happy to record that in recent years we have made tangible changes in some directions for strengthening the capabilities of our diplomatic service, we are continuously working on improving the working conditions of our diplomats operating in international platforms and in other countries. Of course, this is a path that we will continue, at the same time emphasizing that these funds and investments that are made are, of course, related to the economic and budgetary capabilities of Armenia."

Nikol Pashinyan emphasized that, among other things, foreign political decisions should be closely related to the interests of the economic development of the Republic of Armenia, and obviously these decisions should derive from the state interests of Armenia.

"I have had occasion to say that what we mean by saying state interest of the Republic of Armenia coincides with Armenia's economic development and development agenda in general and in most cases. This, I believe, is the subtle change that will become more weighty in our foreign policy decisions and foreign policy strategies this year, or perhaps even before.

Of course, it is obvious that, like many countries of the world, the Republic of Armenia is, in fact, at a crossroads, because the world order, as I have had occasion to say, to put it in very mild terms, is in the stage of profound transformations, and these profound transformations, naturally have their impact on the deep perceptions of international relations and politics. I think this process is taking place in most countries and naturally, this process cannot bypass the Republic of Armenia as well," said the Prime Minister.

Nikol Pashinyan noted that back in 2021, the Government adopted a course and the special importance of regional policy for our country was recorded in the Government's Action Plan 2021-2026. "Because we proceed from the reality that we deal with the outside world, literally and figuratively, through our regional relations, and of course, the improvement and normalization of regional relations is among our priorities.

As in all other cases, the logic of actions and decision-making here is not one-sided, and in all cases our aspiration is to have a normal, balanced relationship where the interests of the countries are mutually taken into account. In this regard, I think that in 2023 we had very active cooperation with foreign ambassadors accredited in Armenia. And since most of them, if not all, are present here, I also want to thank them for their fruitful cooperation during this period.

I think that during 2023, through very active contacts, we tried to present our approaches, the nuances of our positions to them, so that they in turn report to their capitals, so that we can be more understandable in our actions for our international partners and try to make the actions and approaches of our international partners more understandable for us," added the Prime Minister.

According to Nikol Pashinyan, 2023 is a year of great challenges. "As the minister mentioned, one of the key challenges was the ethnic cleansing that took place in Nagorno-Karabakh and, as a result, the depopulation of Nagorno-Karabakh. In this sense, of course, what happened was a consequence of a situation when the government of the Republic of Armenia repeatedly warned publicly that events were developing in that direction and expected concrete international actions, but we must also record that we did not see those actions, unfortunately. In fact, the events unfolded in the most pessimistic scenario we could have predicted, which, however, turned out to be a realistic scenario.

In this regard, I think it is important to emphasize once again our policy regarding forcibly displaced persons from Nagorno Karabakh. Our approach is as follows, if our compatriots do not have a realistic possibility to return to Nagorno Karabakh for some reason, our policy is to do everything to ensure that they stay in the Republic of Armenia. I should also note with satisfaction that the Government of the Republic of Armenia was able to accept more than 100,000 refugees in the Republic of Armenia within one week without establishing refugee camps or tent camps. But on the other hand, I also want to thank our international partners who have supported us during this period and expressed their willingness and actually continue to support us, and to emphasize the importance of the continuation of that support," Nikol Pashinyan said.

The Prime Minister emphasized that the peace agenda remains among the priorities of the government of the Republic of Armenia. "This obviously means that peace has not been established in our region, and that agenda has not been implemented. We, as has been said many times, remain committed to the peace agenda within the framework of the three principles already agreed upon. We hope that the recent events taking place in the region and in the countries of the region will not ultimately prove that the peace process is being deliberately delayed. In the event that such views get more substantiations, they should become a subject of very deep concerns.

Once again congratulating all our attendees and colleagues on the upcoming New Year, I want to thank the representatives of the diplomatic service of Armenia, foreign diplomats accredited in Armenia and representatives of international organizations for their cooperation.

I want to emphasize that in the changing world, the role of diplomacy as a security component is increasing and we should pay more and more attention to this practical function. Our diplomatic and foreign political agendas should be formed in such a way that our policies become a factor ensuring the security of the Republic of Armenia and the region.

Of course, it is understandable that, unfortunately, there is no possibility of ideal decisions and approaches in these areas, otherwise the world would at least be in a completely different situation today. But I want to emphasize this before the diplomatic service of the Republic of Armenia as a task to be implemented in 2024. Of course, we will still have an opportunity to summarize the work we have done during the discussion of the activity report 2023 of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

And at this moment, I want to wish all of us that 2024 be a year of cooperation, peace and stability. We thank all those who are willing and actually support the realization of this goal," said Prime Minister Pashinyan.