On December 4, at UNESCO’s headquarters in Paris, Armenia was elected vice chair of the 20th session of the Committee for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict.

The committee reviewed a program funded through international assistance granted to Armenia for preparing the application to grant "The Monastic Complexes of Tatev and Great Desert of Tatev and the Vorotan River Gorge" enhanced protection status.

In his remarks, Armenia’s Permanent Representative to UNESCO, Aram Hakobyan, expressed gratitude for the international support and commended the UNESCO Secretariat for its close and effective cooperation.

Hakobyan outlined the activities carried out under the project and confirmed that Armenia had submitted a formal application for the inclusion of the Tatev Monastic Complexes on UNESCO’s Enhanced Protection List.

During the session, the committee also reviewed the Secretariat’s report on the 1999 Second Protocol to the 1954 Hague Convention, the progress of projects under international assistance mechanisms, and new applications received. Based on member state proposals, the committee granted enhanced protection to several cultural properties.