In the very chic Hôtel du Collectionneur in Paris, the annual dinner of the CCAF, the Coordinating Council of Armenian Organizations in France, was organized on February 8, 2022. An event during which many personalities showed their solidarity with Armenia and the Eastern Christians. Among them, the singer and actress stand out Line Renaud. At 93, the French star was radiant, with each guest who crossed her path and greeted her.
Thus, two women presidential candidates did not hide their admiration for the lady Line, a committed woman: the Republican Valérie Pécresse and the socialist Anne Hidalgo. The president of the Ile-de-France region and the mayor of Paris were part of the fine list of guests for this evening, as were Prime Minister Jean Castex, his spokesperson Gabriel Attal, Gérard Larcher, Eric Ciotti, Laurent Wauquiez, Bruno Retailleau, or even Elisabeth Moreno.
“France and Armenia are two sister nations“, declared Jean Castex, to whom the head of state, retained in Berlin after a tour of Moscow and Kiev, asked to replace him in this meeting which he had never missed since 2017. Referring to the recent war in Nagorno-Karabakh, a region populated by Armenian separatists attacked by Azerbaijan, “France has not only assumed its responsibilities and made its voice heard but continues to do so“, he assured AFP, “no doubt, surely, too alone“. Corn “Emmanuel Macron was the first to denounce the inadmissible aggression by Azerbaijan”, he added. The French president had unsuccessfully attempted mediation and then failed to obtain a ceasefire, finally imposed by Vladimir Putin. Jean Castex also underlined the efforts of France to have Azerbaijan release Armenian detainees, including eight new ones on Monday. Finally, he recalled Emmanuel Macron’s decision to make April 24 is a day of remembrance of the Armenian Genocide.
Before him, Valérie Pécresse, who came as every year as president of the Ile-de-France region, forcefully repeated her commitment to the Christians of the East and Nagorno-Karabakh. She recalled having gone to the region in December, as a presidential candidate, which earned her death threats from the President of Azerbaijan. Before her, Anne Hidalgo, another candidate for 2022, recalled the support of the city of Paris for Armenia, “outpost of Europe, sentinel of our values“.