Anna Nazaryan
Public Radio of Armenia
UK Ambassador to Armenia Catherine Leach today condemned the blowup of the Saint Martyrs Armenian Church in Deir ez-Zor, Syria by the Islamist State.
“Certainly what has happened in Deir ez-Zor is a tragedy. I am concerned over the fact that in Syria the religious mosaic is endangered. We imagine how endangered is the security of the people living there. That is the reason whythe international community tries to find a possible strategy to come out of this situation,” Ambassador Leach told reporters in Yerevan.
Speaking about the referendum held in Scotland, Catherine Leach said “it’s hard to draw general lessons from it, because every case is different. “In every situation, where the principles of self-determination and territorial integrity are coming to some kind of conflict, the issue should be resolved peacefully through a political process,” she added. According to her, the cases, where there are different ethnic or religious groupings, can be extremely complex.
As for the Karabakh issue, she said the key is that there should be a political solution. The Ambassador said her call to Azerbaijan is the same as to Armenia. “I urge the two Presidents to maintain peace and hold frank negotiations on peace, because this is what the two peoples need. I think it’s important to prepare the two peoples to peace, which includes a painful talk about mutual concessions,” the Ambassador stated.
