YEREVAN. – Philippe Cantre, advisor to Secretary-General Abdou Diouf of the International Organization of La Francophonie, arrived in Armenia to attend the annual meeting of the international network of the chairs of La Francophonie, Aravot daily reports.

“He is in Armenia for the first time, but he knows the culture and the history of Armenia very well.

“In an interview with Aravot, Mr. Cantre described Armenia as an intimate country. Subsequently, he said that it has francophone traditions.

‘“I know what a cross-stone is; the music of Komitas and Sayat Nova. I even know the Cilician dish manti [dumpling],’ our interlocutor said, smiling, [but] added that he has no Armenian genes,” Aravot writes.