January 19, 2022 - 13:07 AMT
Cilicia Catholicos says Diaspora is disappointed in Armenia

Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia Aram I believes the Armenian Diaspora has started to "wear out and fade away", becoming "indifferent to itself and disappointed in Armenia".

Aram I made the remarks during a meeting with Lebanese-Armenian intellectuals in Antelias, commenting on his decision to declare 2022 as the "Year of the Diaspora."

"I had serious reasons to declare [2022] "the Year of the Diaspora", as the Diaspora has begun to disintegrate. The overwhelming majority of Armenians are in the Diaspora. The Diaspora has begun to wear out and fade away," the Catholicos said, according to an excerpt from his speech published on his Facebook page.

"The Diaspora has started to be indifferent to itself, to be disappointed in Armenia, especially in the last few years, after the Artsakh war. The youth have started to abandon our life, our collective life, our structures. We have not been able to keep up with the changes taking place around us."