Ishkhan Saghatelyan, head of the Armenia-Uruguay Friendship Group of the RA National Assembly, received a delegation from Uruguay today.
On August 29, Saghatelyan met with Ana Olivera, President of the House of Representatives of Uruguay, and Pedro Khisdoniani, Vice President of the House of Representatives, who are on an official visit to Armenia. Saghatelyan expressed his gratitude to Uruguay’s executive and legislative bodies for their consistently objective stance on issues of significant importance to Armenia.
Saghatelyan praised the long-standing friendly relations between Armenia and Uruguay, highlighting the considerable potential for further development. He emphasized the vital role of the Armenian community in Uruguay, noting that it serves as an additional bridge and catalyst for enhancing bilateral relations.
Ana Olivera and Pedro Khisdoniani, who has Armenian roots, underscored the Armenian community’s contributions to Uruguay’s social and political life, lauding its unity. They also commended the recent establishment of embassies in both countries.
Armenian parliamentarians expressed their gratitude to Uruguay, the first nation to officially recognize and condemn the Armenian Genocide on April 6, 1965. They discussed the challenges Armenia currently faces, particularly the ongoing aggressive policies of Azerbaijan.
Saghatelyan addressed Azerbaijan’s ethnic cleansing campaign against the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh in 2023, highlighting the plight of dozens of Armenian prisoners of war still held in Baku prisons and the presence of Azerbaijani troops on Armenia’s sovereign territory. “Despite declarations of peace, it is evident that Azerbaijan is not committed to peace and continues to make new demands of Armenia,” he stated.
The importance of clear and targeted assessments from friendly countries was emphasized, along with the need for concerted efforts to secure the release of Armenian prisoners of war through all available channels.
“If the international community had issued accurate and targeted assessments of Azerbaijan’s actions during the 2020 war, it could have at least curbed further steps and actions, which have persisted post-war and continue to this day,” Saghatelyan noted.
The meeting also covered other issues of mutual interest.