By Jean Eckian
Paris – Around 20,000 Armenians gathered near the Invalides institution on Sunday, October 18, to listen to several speakers and activists for the Armenian cause, including Ara Toranian and Mourad Papazian, the co-presidents of the Coordinating Council of Armenian Organizations in France (CCAF). Other speakers included lawyer Arno Klarsfeld, MP François Pupponi, Patrick Karam (vice-president of the Ile de France Regional Council), Pascal Torre (Communist Party), Berivan Firat (spokesperson for the Kurdish Democratic Council), world champion of boxing Arsen Goulamirian, Evagoras Mavrommatis (president of the Cypriot community), and various local political figures.
While President Emmanuel Macron clearly pointed the finger at the intervention of Turkey which sent jihadists to fight against the Armenians of Artsakh, the participants did not accept the position of Minister of Foreign Affairs Yves Le Drian, who invoked the neutrality of France in this conflict. This led to Armenians of France to demand the resignation of the minister.
