President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan, who is on a working visit to the U.S., left for Washington on Tuesday evening. The President attended the reception organized in the U.S. Congress today by the International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation.

Besides the Foundation members, the event was attended by nearly two dozens of Congressmen, including Ed Royce, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Congressmen Adam Schiff, Brad Sherman, Jackie Speier, Jim Costa, Dave Trott, David Valadao, Judy Chu, authoritative representatives of the Armenian  community and others.

At the Congressional reception, Armenian President delivered a speech, by the end of which the Foundation members handed “Raoul Wallenberg” Foundation medal to Robert Morgenthau, grandson of Henry Morgenthau, United States ambassador to the Ottoman Empire during the Armenian Genocide, who openly reported on the extermination of Armenians in those years.

The Congressmen and other officials invited to the meeting welcomed the Armenian President, stressing that they will continue standing by Armenia, backing the solution of its most important issues and contributing to the republic’s development, strengthening and prosperity. 

In his speech, Sargsyan underscored the importance of the mission of Henry Morgenthau. “The name of Henry Morgenthau is unforgettable for any Armenian. As a man devoted to his mission, he preferred truth to silence, and took the unselfish and sometimes dangerous path of helping those in trouble,” Sargsyan said.

The President also stressed the importance of ensuring the safe future of the coming generations: “Staying faithful to “We Remember” slogan, we must do our best and the impossible to ensure safe future for our generations. Thus, the famous mission of Henry Morgenthau and his successors gains great significance not only in terms of preserving memory in the coming generations of Armenians and Americans, but also from the standpoint of international-level humanitarian education. We must combine our efforts to keep vivid the memory of the Armenian Genocide victims and build a world devoid of genocides. Prevention of genocides and struggle against their denial are the most important steps on that path,” Sargsyan said.

By the end of his speech, the President expressed gratitude to the Raoul Wallenberg Foundation, U.S. Congress and all the Congressmen present who “made every effort for the acknowledgement of the Armenian Genocide during these years.”

President Sargsyan also thanked the American people and the U.S. Congress for the humanitarian aid provided to Nagorno-Karabakh during the recent years.