It’s not too late to come together․ The FUTURE ARMENIAN

The FUTURE ARMENIAN Initiative addressed an open letter to the President of the Republic of Armenia Vahagn Khachaturyan, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, the Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II, the Catհolicos of Cilicia Aram I, the President of Artsakh Arayik Harutyunyan, the President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia Alen Simonyan, and all elected and appointed leaders across Armenia and Diaspora. 

The FUTURE ARMENIAN is a public initiative by the Armenians and the friends of Armenia worldwide which aims to work towards ensuring the future of Armenia and Armenians collectively. The FUTURE ARMENIAN initiative was founded by six Co-Initiators: Noubar Afeyan, Artur Alaverdyan, Richard Azarnia, Aram Bekchyan, David Tavadyan and Ruben Vardanyan. The initiative has developed 15 goals that will serve as pillars for the development of Armenia and the Armenian nation. The FUTURE ARMENIAN initiative was launched in April 2020 and currently is supported by over 109,000 signatories from 108 countries.

Since February 21, 2022, The FUTURE ARMENIAN Development Foundation has been created to organize the public initiative. The Executive Director of the Foundation is Artak Apitonian.

IT’S NOT TOO LATE TO COME TOGETHER TO SAVE OUR FUTURE

Open letter to the President of the Republic of Armenia Vahagn Khachaturyan, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, the Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II, the Catholicos of Cilicia Aram I, the President of the Republic of Artsakh Arayik Harutyunyan, the President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia Alen Simonyan, and all elected and appointed leaders across Armenia and Diaspora:

The Armenian nation is in the midst of one of the most difficult periods in more than a century. The whole world is undergoing shocks and massive transformations. One hundred years after the Armenian Genocide, the regional and global upheavals have once again magnified the existential threats against our homeland.

It is time for us to unite and urgently protect the present to save our future. As descendants of genocide survivors, we owe this to our ancestors. We owe this to our children, to our grandchildren, and to our culture and history.

Challenges facing our nation and homeland are multifaceted:

• Artsakh is endangered, and its population faces daily threats against its physical and social security without any certainty of its future.
• Turkey and Azerbaijan, in alignment, continue their policy of imposing maximum losses on Armenia. The ongoing negotiations with them may result in forced agreements that further jeopardize our ability to build an enduring state on our homeland.
• Economic development in Armenia has been lacking and inadequate to provide for our national security. Worse yet, we now face extreme geopolitical threats, wars, pandemic, and risks of sanctions.
• Armenia and its Diaspora have not found ways to effectively partner during the 30 years since Armenia’s independence. Our global networks and expertise remain largely detached from the urgent needs of our homeland.

The elected government of Armenia is responsible for the present state of Armenia. However, the actions it takes now – or fails to take – will impact the future of not only the Republic of Armenia and Artsakh, but the whole nation. At this historic moment, all elected and appointed leaders must accept broader responsibility, leverage the potential of the whole nation and be accountable to Armenians at home and abroad for steering our course to a bright and prosperous future.

Today, we should say NO to the status quo thinking, NO to underestimating the real threats to our existence, NO to indifference and inaction.

Facing these current realities, we are in desperate need of leadership and leaders who will communicate but also listen, engage and unite the nation, combine resources and act together, understanding that no single group or political party should make decisions alone.

The Future Armenian initiative accepts this historic responsibility and stands ready to contribute in every possible way.

It’s not too late to come together. We are a nation of survivors, not spectators. It is high time to engage in the struggle to save our collective future.

THE FUTURE ARMENIAN INITIATIVE