RA Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports Zhanna Andreasyan received today the delegation headed by Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe Bjorn Berge.

ESCS Deputy Ministers Arthur Martirosyan, Araqsia Svadyan and other representatives of the Council of Europe attended the meeting.

Welcoming the guests, ESCS Minister emphasized the importance of launching the Council of Europe Action Plan for Armenia 2023-2026 and stressed that the Ministry is actively involved in a number of CoE platforms, which enables to implement numerous joint programs in the fields of education, science, culture, sports and youth.

Zhanna Andreasyan noted that the Republic of Armenia, having ratified various CoE documents, also assumed sectoral responsibility for the implementation of certain works and confirmed the intention to ensure their continuity, as well as the commitment to the principles and values of the Council of Europe.

“We are in the active phase of reforms in general education. Our priorities include raising awareness about human rights and legal education,” said Zhanna Andreasyan, noting that at the end of the previous year, the law “On Approving the RA Education Development State Program until 2030" was adopted, where the important issues of the field are emphasized. The Minister stressed that within the framework of the new program, progress in education is anticipated in various directions.

Thankful for the reception, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe Bjorn Berge noted that the Council of Europe Action Plan for 2023-2026 is multi-layered and provides ample opportunities for cooperation. Bjorn Berge stressed that Armenia with its history and culture, the Armenian society with its value systems are part of the European family, and the Council of Europe positively assesses cooperation with Armenia and the progress made in a number of areas.

Touching upon the implementation of joint programs in the field of sports, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe Bjorn Berge highlighted the importance of actions to be carried out in the fight against doping. Zhanna Andreasyan informed that with the amendments in the law on “Physical Culture and Sports”, the concept of “doping” and anti-doping activities were defined to bring the legislation in force in the country in line with the norms of international and domestic law.

Touching upon the expansion of cultural cooperation, the ESCS Minister underlined the importance of joint activities with the CoE Steering Committee for Culture, Heritage and Landscape.

Within this context, Zhanna Andreasyan expressed her concern to her European colleagues about the issue of preserving the Armenian cultural heritage in the territories under the control of Azerbaijan.

The ESCS Minister drew the attention of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe to the issue of the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh and expressed hope that international structures will take targeted actions and steps to resolve the problem.

The Minister emphasized that as a result of the humanitarian crisis, a number of basic rights of about 120 thousand residents, including 30 thousand children, are violated.

The sides also considered other issues of mutual interest, confirming that within the framework of the Council of Europe's new action plan for Armenia, the areas of cooperation with Armenia are expanding.