On November 28, in Bochum, Germany, Harutyun Grigoryan, Resident Representative of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) in Germany, held a lecture on the present situation in Nagorno-Karabakh and ways of settling the conflict proposed by different agencies.

Over 60,000 Armenians are now living in Germany, but Mr. Grigoryan is sure that quality is superior to quantity in this case. “We decided to hold more meetings and discussions with the Armenian community in Germany, as this country is of great interest due to its active policy in the post-Soviet area, particularly in the South Caucasus. At present, Germany is playing a serious role in the EU decision-making process,” Grigoryan said. The NKR attaches high importance to the development of economic cooperation with the European Union (EU).

As regards the Nagorno-Karabakh problem, he said: “The Armenian President’s position is as follows: we are not going to sign anything before Azerbaijan recognizes Nagorno-Karabakh’s status. Thereafter, the NKR must be involved as negotiator. It is not until it has been done that other issues will be discussed.”

The speeches caused intense discussions among the attendees, who were most interested in how Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh are going to resist the Turkish-Azeri propaganda, as well as in what steps the Armenian authorities expect the Diaspora to make.

Grigoryan said that the diplomatic circles’ potential is limited. In some cases, embassies and diplomats have no official right to apply to state authorities or interfere in certain issues, while Armenians who are citizens of particular states can apply to state authorities as citizens rather than as representatives of national minorities.