Several hundred people took part in the conference “France: Land that received Armenian Genocide survivors,” organized by Philippe Kaltenbach, President of the France-Armenia friendship group of the French Senate, Nouvelles d'Arménie reports.

During the conference, the historian Yves Ternon gave a detailed description of the conditions which resulted in a great number of Genocide survivors taking refuge in France at the time when the republic suffered from war and was in need of labor force.   

Valérie Toranian, the author of the new book “Foreigner”, who told in her book the story of her grandmother, delivered an emotional speech, underscoring the honorable attitude of that generation of survivors towards France.

Journalist and political analyst Gaïdz Minassian touched on the Armenian-French relations and the vital tasks of Armenia. The surprise guest Esther Benbassa, Deputy President of the France-Armenia friendship group of the French Senate, told about her childhood in Istanbul, as well as her friendship with the Papazian family.