Canada-Armenia Parliamentary Friendship Group
Parliamentary Exchange

In April, 2001, a Canada-Armenia Parliamentary Friendship Group was created in the Parliament of Canada under the leadership of Sarkis Assadourian Liberal M.P.
In October of the same year, an Armenia-Canada Parliamentary Friendship Group was established within the Armenian National Assembly.
In May of 2002, a delegation of the Canada-Armenia Parliamentary Friendship Group comprised of Sarkis Assadourian, M.P., Eleni Bakopanos, M.P., Tom Wappel, M.P., Senator Shirley Maheu, Senator Raynell Andreychuk, Alvin Curling, M.P.P. (Ontario), Yvan Bordeleau, MNA (l'Acadie, Quebec), visited Yrevan.
On September 26, members of the Armenia-Canada Parliamentary Friendship Group arrived in Canada with a reciprocal visit. During their seven day stay in Canada, the delegation of Armenian MPs headed by the President of the National Assembly, Mr. Armen Khachatryan, had meetings with Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, Speaker of the House of Commons Peter Milliken, Minister of Foreign Affairs Bill Graham, Secretary of State for Eastern Europe Hon. Gar Knutson, Chief Electoral Officer of Canada Jean-Pierre Kingsley, Speaker of the Ontario Legislature Gary Carr, First Vice President of the Quebec National Assembly Raymond Brouillet, leaders of the Armenian-Canadian communities.

	Canada-Armenia Parliamentary Friendship Group(CAPFG); from left to right: Hovhannes Hovhannisyan, Chairman of the Standing Committee on Foreign Relations; Gagik Minasyan, Chairman of the Standing Committee on Finance, Credit, Budgetary and Economic Issues, Head of the CAPFG; Armen Khachatryan, President of the National Assembly; Davit Hovhannisyan, Standing Committee on Science, Education, Culture and Youth Affairs, Ara Papian, Armenian Ambassador to Canada; Armen Mkhitaryan, Standing Committee on Defense, National Security and Internal Affairs; Manvel Ghazaryan, Standing Committee on Finance, Credit, Budgetary and Economic Issues, Vazgen Manukyan, Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs
	Meeting at the Prime Minister's Office; from left to right:Ambassador Ara Papian, Sarkis Assadourian, M.P. House of Commons, Chairman of Canada-Armenia Parliamentary Friendship Group, Prime Minister Jean Chretien, President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia Armen Khachatryan.
	President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia Armen Khachatryan (right) meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada Bill Graham.
	October 1, 2002 reception at the Armenian Embassy in Ottawa.