In Yerevan, the Department of Iranian Studies at YSU and the “Center for Caucasian Studies” at Tehran University jointly organized a roundtable discussion on “The Millennial Friendship of Armenia and Iran and Regional Processes.

“We consider it our mission to also contribute to the creation of a scientific and cultural atmosphere for Armenian-Iranian relations, since political, diplomatic and economic relations are often formed in such an atmosphere,” Vardan Voskanyan, Head of YSU Department of Iranian Studies, said at the beginning of the discussion.

YSU Faculty of Oriental Studies Dean Ruben Melkonyan, in turn, pointed out that it’s a great honor and joy to welcome such a scientific, one might say, civilizational event, whose roots go back thousands of years, and they, realizing their duty, continue this tradition of thousands of years, which connects the indigenous and ancient peoples in this region.

In his view, especially in this turbulent period, Armenians and Iranians can serve as the best example in terms of coexistence, living side by side, respecting each other, in the matter of cherishing and preserving peace not in words, but in deeds.

Aliens and imported peoples are appropriating or trying to appropriate not only culture, literature, famous writers, but also territories and even toponyms of indigenous peoples.

In this context, Armenians and Iranians are targeted by outsiders. Therefore, we are more than obliged to continue to promote our centuries-old, best traditions in academic arenas as well.