High-level policy segment of the Regional Forum on Sustainable Development for the UNECE Region

06 April, 2022

Statement delivered by H.E. Andranik Hovhannisyan
Permanent Representative of Armenia to the UN Office in Geneva

Mr․ President,

It is an honor and a privilege to address the Regional Forum on Sustainable Development.

The Sustainable Development agenda is of particular importance to Armenia. It is a landlocked developing country that aspires to build a modern, human-centered state where people enjoy their rights, freedoms and livelihood opportunities to the full. We believe that the 2030 Agenda is setting a proper equation for meeting these aims, with effective multilateralism at the core of our joint efforts.

We, in Armenia aspire to develop an inclusive society benefitting from the highest level of technological, industrial, and environmental standards. Quality education is a key in this respect. Just recently the Government has launched discussions on a new State Program for Development of Education by 2030. Science and innovation are at its heart, envisaging the development of the economy and the public life of the country anchored on the human capital.

The issues of gender equality remain at the forefront of our reform agenda. The equal and meaningful participation of women in all aspects of public life is a key priority. During its Chairmanship in the Commission on the Status of Women Armenia contributed to the adoption of key documents aimed at strengthening the capacities of women in the areas of peace and security, full and effective engagement in politics and economy, as well as meeting the needs of women and girls in terms of effective recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Government of Armenia faces several challenges related to the environmental degradation and takes active measures towards safeguarding the threatened ecosystems and meeting our international commitments.

Mr. President

The key message of the Sustainable Development Agenda is the pledge to leave no one behind. Unfortunately, this is a key area where the efforts of international community are failing. The latter has continuously been unable to properly address the plight of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh: their rights, their freedoms and their aspirations.

In Autumn 2020 Azerbaijan launched a war of aggression and used force to suppress the right to self-determination of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh, in violation of international law and the purposes and principles of the UN Charter. The aggression was accompanied by mass atrocities, including ethnic cleansing, war crimes, extrajuditial executions and other grave violations of the international humanitarian law and international human rights laws.

The United Nations has not been able to secure humanitarian access to the people of Nagorno-Karabakh on the ground, essentially leaving them behind, and on their own, vis-à-vis the existential threat they face. Most recently, Azerbaijan has turned the disruption of gas supply to Nagorno-Karabakh into a weapon of collective punishment of the people. For almost 20 days residential buildings, hospitals and schools were left without heating. 120 thousand people, including children, elderly and disabled people, spent weeks without heating in the freezing winter conditions.

The time is ripe for proving that we indeed mean it, when we say that no one should be left behind.

Thank you.

MFA RA
official website

Dual citizenship

Electronic visa

Visa applications