The court rulings against the Declarations of Friendship between the cities of France and Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh Republic) won’t impact the friendship between the two nations. This is stated in the statement by Mayor of Valence, Vice-President of the Overn Ron Alp district Nicolas Daragon.

Daragon particularly stated the following in his statement:

“Contrary to the pressure exerted from abroad, and we all know about that, I reaffirm my support to Artsakh, its authorities elected through free elections and the course for self-determination. Even if the administrative court of Grenoble annulled the Declaration of Friendship between Valence and Stepanakert. I don’t regret signing the Declaration at all, and I repeat that the Declaration reflects the will for friendship.

I still insist that local self-government bodies are not competent to sign similar declarations of friendship, especially when most of those declarations (particularly in the case of Valence) are not decisions of municipal councils and can’t be questioned with the decisions of administrative courts.

A couple of months ago, the President of France assured our compatriots of Armenian descent that humanitarian and educational programs would not be prosecuted.

At the same time, there is more court prosecution, sending clear messages to the belligerent Azerbaijan.

By choosing economic interests over centuries-old friendship, the French government is violating its conventional position to select a moral and balanced position.

This is an approach that France has shown to peoples with the desire for freedom,” the statement reads.