On Tuesday, June 12, 2012 His Eminence Bishop Bagrat Galstanian, Primate of the Armenian Church Canadian Diocese paid an official visit in Ottawa to the Leader of the Opposition, the Honourable Thomas Mulcair.
Primate Galstanian expressed his greetings and sincere congratulations to Mr. Mulcair on his election as NDP leader and his new role as the Leader of the Official Opposition in the Parliament of Canada. He conveyed his good wishes on behalf of the Armenian Church Canadian Diocese, the Diocesan Council, the Clergy and the Parish communities throughout Canada.
His Eminence briefed Mr. Mulcair on relevant topics in relation to the work of the Diocese and discussed the challenges facing the mission of our Church and the concerns of our communities across Canada. The two leaders spoke about a wide range of issues pertaining to present and future bilateral relation opportunities between Canada and Armenia.
During the meeting, Bishop Galstanian discussed his reflections concerning Canada’s role to help resolve the stalled efforts of the Nagorno-Karabagh conflict. The Primate asked for Mr. Mulcair’s help to secure the support of the Canadian government for rapprochement between Armenia and Azerbaijan to achieve a peaceful and permanent resolution to NKR conflict.
In conclusion, Mr. Mulcair thanked the Primate for his visit and sharing his valuable insights about issues concerning the Armenian community in Canada and also the major global issues of specific importance to all Canadian Armenians.
Accompanying the Primate was Dn. Hagop Arslanian, Director of the Governmental Relations Office of the Diocese.
***The Honourable Thomas Mulcair, was elected leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) and assumed the office of the Leader of the Official Opposition in the House of Commons in March 2012. Mr. Mulcair is well known to our Diocese and community and on many occasions has had the opportunity to meet with our parishioners; most especially with respect to his position as the Member of Parliament for the electoral district of Outremont, home to the Diocese of the Armenian Church of Canada.
