The statement by the US Embassy in Armenia, that urged American citizens to be vigilant when visiting Armenia during the forthcoming Christmas and New Year holiday, contains no political context, said the President of the Armenian Tourism Federation.
Mekhak Apresyan noted the aforementioned at a press conference on Saturday.
In his words, the said statement is a standard procedure of a call for vigilance amid an increase in tourist flow on the Christmas and New Year holidays.
“This is a standard procedure, especially since an additional clarification was given,” Apresyan said. “So it would be inexpedient to express any tough stance on that occasion by Armenian authorities.”
He stressed that, by and large, the Armenian public, including the media and law enforcement agencies, needs to create the tourism “image” of the country.
“Armenia and the Armenian people have always been declared with their hospitality,” Mekhak Apresyan added. “In addition to that, many international organizations announce about the [high] level of safety [in Armenia]. We [Armenians] have shown a high level of safety and benevolence even during the ‘velvet revolution,’ which was wholly pacific. It’s very important that those events were covered by international media. Furthermore, a large number of foreign tourists also participated in the marches, [and] which confirms what I say.”