The President of Lithuania met with the Lithuanian community of Armenia
On 20 May, during an official visit to Armenia, President of Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda met with the Lithuanian community of Armenia. During the meeting, the President stated that a strong relationship with the diaspora is one of the main priorities of Lithuania.
“We felt supported by the Lithuanian diaspora in the struggle for Lithuania’s independence and in the reinforcement of democratic values, and now we need the diaspora’s support for Lithuania again, as we are struggling with the challenges posed by non-democratic countries, hybrid attacks, and propaganda campaigns against Lithuanian statehood,” the President said in Yerevan.
During the meeting, the President also presented a renowned Armenian literary critic, translator and writer Felix Bakhchinyan with a state award. Bakhchinyan was awarded the Cross of the Knight of the Order for Merits to Lithuania for strengthening the cultural ties between Lithuania and Armenia, and for the translations the Lithuanian literary classics’ works to Armenian, such as “Metai” by K. Donelaitis, “Anykščių šilelis” by A. Baranauskas, “Pavasario balsai” by Maironis, “Laimės žiburys” by J. Biliūnas, an anthology “Laimingasis – tai aš” by J. Grušas, a poetry collection “Varnėnas po mėnuliu” by S. Geda.
The event was finalized with the musical pieces by Lithuanian composers performed by the Armenian children choir from Tigran Chukhajyan musical school.
