On September 15-16, with the blessings of His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch

and Catholicos of All Armenians, the Diocese of the Armenian Church of New

Nakhichevan and Russia hosted a two-day conference on “Artsakh (Karabakh) in

historical and modern context”.

More than fifty renowned Armenian and foreign academics: historians, archaeologists,

theologians and cultural experts from Artsakh, Armenia and different cities of Russia

participated in the conference. Armenologists from the USA, Canada, Italy, Austria and

France also presented reports remotely.

During the two-day conference, a number of issues were discussed, such as the

preservation of the ancient Armenian spiritual-cultural monuments and manuscripts of

Artsakh, the study of the history of the Armenians of Artsakh, etc.

Concerns have been also raised over the attempts of the falsification of the history of

Artsakh by Azerbaijan.

Based on historical facts and archival documents, some Russian speakers reiterated

that the state of Azerbaijan did not exist before the 20th century, and Azerbaijanis cannot

be considered the indigenous people of Artsakh, that Azerbaijan creates its own history

appropriating, in particular, the Armenian historical and cultural heritage.

The holding of the conference was an essential step in drawing the attention of Russian

part of the international community to the need to take immediate measures to protect

the endangered Armenian spiritual and cultural heritage of Artsakh.

The proceedings of the Conference will be published soon.