The 25 years of diplomatic relations between the Order of Malta and the Republic of Armenia were celebrated on Tuesday evening with a charity concert in the Basilica dei Santi Bonifacio e Alessio on the Aventine Hill in Rome.

In the afternoon, the Grand Chancellor of the Order of Malta, Riccardo Paternò di Montecupo, received in the Magistral Villa the Armenian Health Minister, Anahit Avanesyan, accompanied by the Armenian ambassador to the Order of Malta, Garen Nazarian. The talks, in which the Order of Malta’s ambassador to Armenia, Domenico Arduini, also participated, focussed on the health situation in the Caucasian country, with particular emphasis on the Order’s paediatrics and child health programmes and assistance to pregnant women.

The Grand Chancellor and the Minister of Health then met the diplomatic corps accredited to the Order of Malta in the Chapter House. In his brief speech, in which he conveyed the Order of Malta’s best wishes for the Silver Jubilee, Riccardo Paternò di Montecupo reasserted its desire “to intensify cooperation in both the diplomatic and humanitarian sectors, as well as promote our shared Christian values”.

Those present at the event then moved to the adjacent basilica of Sant’Alessio for a concert, attended by some 400 people. The funds raised will go to the Order of Malta’s healthcare programmes in Armenia.

On 29 May, to celebrate 25 years of diplomatic relations, there was an exchange of official letters between the Order of Malta’ Grand Chancellor and the Armenian Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Magistral Palace.