Armen Ghazondyan Discusses Urgency of Missing Persons Data Verification at CIS Meeting

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, Armen Ghazondyan, participated in the meeting of the Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the CIS held on December 10. According to the information provided to Armenpress by the Department of Press and Public Diplomacy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, the meeting, conducted in a videoconference format, discussed various issues concerning cooperation among participant states within the CIS framework and several matters on the international agenda.

The agenda included around 15 documents aimed at enhancing cooperation among CIS participant states in different directions, including the program for multilevel consultations among CIS foreign ministries in 2021, the activities of the CIS Executive Committee, and joint actions of CIS participant states to mitigate the socio-economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Some of the documents signed during the meeting will be included in the agenda of the upcoming meeting of CIS heads of state, specifically a joint statement of the heads of CIS participant states in connection with the 75th anniversary of the UN, a joint declaration on cooperation in the field of international information security among CIS participant states, a concept on military cooperation among CIS participant states until 2025, and a concept for the further development of the CIS.

During his speech, Deputy Foreign Minister Armen Ghazondyan presented Armenia’s position on the agenda items. He also addressed the aggression unleashed by Azerbaijan against Artsakh with the direct support of Turkey and the involvement of mercenary terrorists. The attention of the participants of the CIS meeting was drawn to urgent issues requiring immediate solutions, such as the exchange of prisoners of war and hostages, as well as the bodies of the deceased, the urgency of verifying data on missing persons, and the necessity of preserving Armenian historical and cultural values.