Eduard Nalbandyan

Edward[1] Nalbandian (Armenian: Էդվարդ Նալբանդյան; born July 16, 1956) is a prominent Armenian diplomat. He was the 7th Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia[2][3] and served in that capacity from April 2008 to May 2018.

Edward Nalbandian
7th Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia
In office
14 April 2008  12 May 2018
PresidentSerzh Sargsyan
Armen Sarkissian
Prime MinisterTigran Sargsyan
Hovik Abrahamyan
Karen Karapetyan
Serzh Sargsyan
Nikol Pashinyan
Preceded byVartan Oskanian
Succeeded byZohrab Mnatsakanyan
President of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe
In office
16 May 2013  14 November 2013
Preceded byGilbert Saboya Sunyé
Succeeded byMichael Spindelegger
Ambassador of Armenia to France
In office
1999  April 2008
1st Ambassador of Armenia to Egypt
In office
1994–1999
Personal details
Born (1956-07-16) 16 July 1956
Hrazdan, Armenian SSR, Soviet Union
Political partyIndependent
Alma materMoscow State Institute of International Relations

Biography

Edward Nalbandian was born in 1956 in Hrazdan city, Armenia. At the age of 22 he graduated from Moscow State Institute of International Relations. In 1988 he received his Ph.D. in Political Science from the Institute of Oriental Studies of the USSR National Academy of Sciences.[4] Nalbandian speaks Armenian, French, English, Russian and Arabic. He is married and has a daughter.

Diplomatic career

Mr. Nalbandian started his diplomatic career in 1978. After obtaining a doctorate degree in political science from the prestigious Institute of Oriental Studies of the USSR Academy of Sciences, Nalbandian was sent first to Lebanon as a diplomat and then, in 1986, appointed First Secretary of the USSR Embassy in Egypt. In 1982, Nalbandian was the youngest diplomat in the Soviet Union who was rewarded the highest diplomatic medal for his service-the Peoples Friendship Medal – USSRs third highest honor.[5] When Armenia became independent, Nalbandian was invited to become Armenias representative in Egypt, thus in 1992 Edward Nalbandian joined the diplomatic service of newly independent Armenia as Chargé d'Affaires and later in 1994 as Ambassador of Armenia to Egypt. From Cairo he was also accredited as Armenia's Ambassador to Morocco and Oman.[6] By October 1992, Nalbandian had established an embassy in Cairo-one of the first embassies Armenia opened.

In 1999 Nalbandian was appointed as Ambassador to France, where he served for almost a decade. This period marked the flourishing of Armenian-French interstate relations, marked notably by the state visits of the Presidents and the Year of Armenia in France.[7] Edward Nalbandian served also as non-resident Ambassador to Israel, Vatican and Andorra,[8] and he was Personal Representative of the President of Armenia to the International organization of La Francophonie from 2006-2008.[9] Edward Nalbandian represented Armenia in several dozens of international conferences and summits.[10]

After Serzh Sargsyan took office as President, he appointed Nalbandian as Foreign Minister from April 14, 2008 till May 2018.[11][12]

Honors, Honorary titles and awards

Edward Nalbandian has received a number of awards,[13] among them:

  • 1982 – The USSR award of Friendship of Nations
  • 2001 – Commander of the Legion of Honor of the French Republic
  • 2001 – Armenian Medal of Mkhitar Gosh for significant services in the sphere of diplomacy
  • 2003 – Saint Gregory's Grand Cross Order of Holy See
  • 2011 – Grand Officier de la Légion d'honneur
  • 2012 – 2nd degree medal “For Services Contributed to the Motherland”
  • 2014 – Honorary Doctorate degree of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) for his contribution to strengthening international security, and his ongoing contribution to Russia-Armenia relations.[14][15][16]
  • 2015 – La Grande Médaille de la Ville de Paris
  • 2015 – 1st degree medal “For Services Contributed to the Motherland”, Armenia
  • 2016 – Gold Medal of the Human Rights League of Spain
  • 2016 – "Order of Friendship" of the Russian Federation
  • 2016 – Order Pro Merito Melitensi, The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta[17]
  • 2016 – Honorary Professor of Yerevan State University.[18]
  • 2017 – Russian Order of Friendship awarded by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, for his great contribution to strengthening friendship and cooperation with Russia.[19]

See also

References

  1. Also Eduard or Edvard
  2. LLC, Helix Consulting. "Պատմական ակնարկ - Նախկին նախարարներ - Հայաստանի Հանրապետության Կառավարություն". www.gov.am. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  3. "History". www.mfa.am (in Armenian). Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  4. "His Excellency Edward Nalbandian - Center for Middle Eastern Studies". Center for Middle Eastern Studies. 2016-09-17. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  5. "Հրազդանի համայնքապետարան". www.hrazdan.am. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  6. "The Global Intelligence Files - [Eurasia] Armenian Clans: Who controls what in a small country". wikileaks.org. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  7. "Minister Edward Nalbandian". www.mfa.am (in Armenian). Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  8. "Multi-vector foreign policy of Armenia | Departmental | Events". www.politics.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  9. "Edward Nalbandian appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs". armenpress.am. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  10. ""Nagorno-Karabakh: Is a Solution Visible?" A Lecture by Minister Edward Nalbandian | Center for Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies". creees.stanford.edu. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  11. "New President Appoints Two Key Ministers", ArmeniaNow.com, April 15, 2008.
  12. "Sarkisian Appoints Key Ministers in Emerging Cabinet", Armenialiberty.org, April 15, 2008.
  13. "His Excellency Edward Nalbandian - Center for Middle Eastern Studies". Center for Middle Eastern Studies. 2016-09-17. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  14. "MGIMO University, Moscow". ru-ru.facebook.com (in Russian). Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  15. "Edward Nalbandian receives honorary doctorate degree from MGIMO". armenpress.am. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  16. "Edward Nalbandian to be awarded title of Honorary Doctor of MGIMO". mediamax.am. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  17. "MFA of Armenia🇦🇲 on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  18. "The title of Honorary Professor of YSU was awarded to Edward Nalbandian". Hayern Aysor. 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  19. "Press release on Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian's official visit to Russia". www.mid.ru. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
Political offices
Preceded by
Vartan Oskanian
Minister of Foreign Affairs
2008–2018
Succeeded by
Zohrab Mnatsakanian
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