President Emanuel Macron of France once again will participate and speak at the annual gala organized by the Coordinating Council of Armenian Organizations in France (CCAF), which will take place on January 29 at l’Hôtel du Collectionneur in Paris.
The news of Macron’s participation was confirmed by CCAF co-chair and Armenian Revolutionary Federation Bureau member Murad Papazian, who told Armenpress about the banquet, during which Turkish historian Taner Akcam will be honored.
During last year’s CCAF gala Macron declared that he would honor his campaign promise and declare April 24 a national day of remembrance for the Armenian Genocide, angering Ankara in the process.
“France is, first and foremost, the country that knows how to look history in the face, and was among the first to denounce the killing of the Armenian people in 1915 as genocide, calling it was, and in 2001 after a long struggle recognized it as law,” Macron said the CCAF gala in 2019.
Macron honored his pledge and beginning last year France observes April 24 as Genocide Remembrance Day across the country.
In 2018, Macron attended the CCAF dinner, alongside Garo Paylan, an Armenian member of Turkey’s parliament representing the People’s Democratic Party (HDP).