Yerevan /Mediamax/. Acting Foreign Minister of Armenia Zohrab Mnatsakanyan believes that soon Armenia and Israel will have embassies in each other’s territory, The Jerusalem Post reports in the article Are Israeli-Armenian Relations Warming Up?
“I’m optimistic that this will happen soon. We’d be more than happy to upgrade our relations with Israel,” Mnatsakanyan said as quoted by The Jerusalem Post.
When asked if Armenia would agree to open a future Armenian Embassy in Jerusalem (and not in Tel Aviv – Mediamax), Mnatsakanyan responded:
“We understand the delicate nature of this controversy, and we’ll make an effort to make the move a positive one.”
On upcoming visit
The acting Foreign Minister believes Armenia has so much to offer Israel in the fields of agriculture, science, technology, education and innovation. He brought up that Armenian IT experts developed a number of mobile apps that have attracted millions of users.
“I plan on traveling to Israel myself in the near future to promote joint ventures,” added Mnatsakanyan.
On recognition of the Armenian Genocide
Zohrab Mnatsakanyan also commented on the cancelation of the Knesset vote on recognition of the Genocide, saying:
“The vote wasn’t just about recognizing the Armenian Genocide. It was about taking a moral stance. My ancestors are genocide survivors who found a refuge in Tbilisi. Many of my relatives were killed in the genocide. But we do not feel like victims. We are victors because we were not supposed to be on the surface of this earth. I would not say that we were not disappointed that the vote didn’t take place in the end. We know that this issue has become a trading chip in your relations with Turkey and it is very unfortunate.”
On possible military cooperation
Touching on the possibilities of bilateral military cooperation between Armenia and Israel, Zohrab Mnatsakanyan noted that the fact Israel sold weapons to Azerbaijan “doesn’t mean that we would not like to develop relations with Israel, including in the military field”.
Mnatsakanyan was asked to comment on Avigdor Liberman quitting his position as Defense Minister, to which Armenia’s acting FM replied:
“I don’t think I’m going to lose any sleep over it. He’s the one who sold arms to our adversary, to Azerbaijan.”
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