Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of Armenia Vahram Dumanyan today had a meeting with Head of the Delegation of the European Union in Armenia, Ambassador Andrea Wiktorin.

Greeting the Ambassador, Dumanyan attached importance to the programs being carried out in the education, science, culture and youth sectors with the support and through the partnership of the EU.

Touching upon the recent war in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), the minister stated that, as a result of the war, a large sector of the cultural heritage of Artsakh is out of Armenian control and is directly in danger.

“At this moment, what is primary is the preservation of those universal values, and we anticipate the support of the European Union to prevent any danger posing a threat to those values,” Dumanyan stressed, emphasizing that, in the context of the recent events, reforms in the education sector are overriding for the Armenian government as a guarantee for national security and adding that the government also anticipates the EU’s support in this regard.

In her turn, Wiktorin stated that the EU shares the challenges facing Armenia. “The year 2020 was truly a difficult year. COVID-19 taught us all to further enhance our digital capacities and infrastructures. For that purpose, the EU has provided assistance to the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport in order to organize remote learning. The EU also shares the concern about cultural heritage in Artsakh and highly appreciates the fact-finding activities of the UNESCO in this regard,” she said.

Wiktorin also touched upon the EU for Innovation in Armenia, Erasmus+ and Horizon-2020 programs as good examples of cooperation and informed that the EU has launched the process of earmarking the programs to be carried out in the course of the next seven years.