Artsakh’s independence is not merely a matter of the past and must retain a priority place on the Armenian national agenda, Catholicos Aram I said.
“Artsakh’s independence has not been buried under the dust of history,” Catholicos Aram I of the Great House of Cilicia said in a message marking Artsakh Independence Day.
“It must occupy a priority place on our nation’s agenda, no matter how much we try, under the label of realism, to consider that page of the past closed,” the message said.
Aram I also described as priorities “the struggle for the restoration of Artsakh’s independence, reaffirmation of the right of the Armenians of Artsakh to return, and the prompt release of Artsakh’s political prisoners,” according to the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia.
“In the history of nations, circumstances are always changing, and the alignment of geopolitical interests is constantly shifting. We must stay away from rigid thinking, theoretical references, as well as the imposition of the interests and approaches of a particular moment. Combining hope with faith and tempering it with strong will, we must move toward the future.
“Today, as we look back and mark the Independence Day of the Republic of Artsakh, first and foremost, let us remember all our martyrs who shed their blood for the restoration of Artsakh’s independence. Let us also remember our leaders who worked and served to further strengthen Artsakh’s independence and who today are suffering in prisons in Baku. Indeed, remembering alone is not enough; it must be transformed into struggle…
“Woe to the nation that imprisons itself within the narrow confines of present-day interests, concealed behind the veil of realism. Those nations remain on the stage of history that see their present as anchored in the past and strengthened by a vision of the future, and that move forward with renewed faith and hope.
“Such has been our nation. This is the message of the independence of the Republic of Artsakh. Let us remain attentive and faithful to our history, old and new, and to the sacred messages handed down to us,” Aram I’s message said.