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The City Council of Saint-Étienne, France adopted a decision on recognizing the sovereignty of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) and protecting its people, the Armenian Embassy in France said on Saturday.

The council urged the French authorities to “immediately” recognize the Republic of Artsakh and to establish diplomatic relations with the country’s authorities.

It also called on the government to act decisively, using all diplomatic means, to find a lasting and peaceful solution through step-by-step negotiations, ensuring the security of the civilian population and thus rejecting any form of military solution.

The City Council of Saint-Étienne also decided to provide €30,000 in aid to the Armenian Fund of France for the needs of the civilian population.

“The centuries-old friendship between France and Armenia, as well as France’s universal and humanist tradition of human rights protection, the fight against all forms of discrimination, and the protection of fundamental freedoms require that France immediately recognize the Artsakh Republic, making it the first bulwark of the Artsakh population. The international recognition will allow to guarantee the inviolability of Artsakh's borders, to effectively protect the people of the country, who have the right, like the people of Azerbaijan, to live in peace and to search for the best way of development,” the decision said.