His Holiness Karekin II Receives UN Resident Coordinator
On March 15, His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, received Ms. Consuelo Vidal, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative to Armenia. It was the first visit of Ms. Vidal to the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin.
His Holiness welcomed Ms. Vidal to the center of Armenian spiritual life, congratulated her on her appointment and wished her a productive tenure in Armenia. The Catholicos reflected on the long-standing successful cooperation between the Republic of Armenia and the United Nations in the spheres of rural development, healthcare and fostering democratic governance.
During the meeting, the Pontiff of All Armenians also presented the facts surrounding the willful and deliberate destruction of tens of thousands of Khatchkars (Stone-Crosses) in Julfa (Nakhijevan), stating that these acts of intolerance are crimes against culture and religion which affect all of humanity. His Holiness urged Ms. Vidal to pursue this matter further through the appropriate UN agencies, since UNESCO had been notified on numerous occasions in the past few years of the danger facing these historic Armenian Christian monuments.
Ms. Vidal thanked His Holiness for the reception and assured him of her readiness to be of assistance to the Armenian Church and the Mother See at all times.
