On 10 December, a Republican Conference entitled “Key Issues in the History of the Eastern Armenian Provinces” was held on the initiative of the Scientific Group of the NAS RA Institute of History. The conference was dedicated to the centenary of the birth of the historian, writer, and public and political figure Bagrat Ulubabyan.

The conference was organised in connection with two significant dates related to the formation and development of Artsakh statehood. On 10 December 1991, a referendum on the independence of the Republic of Artsakh was conducted with the participation of international observers, in which 99.8 per cent of the participants voted in favour of declaring independence. The second key date was associated with the Day of the Constitution of Artsakh, adopted in 2006, which marked an important milestone in the institutional consolidation and development of Artsakh’s statehood.

Representing the Institute of History, reports were delivered by Vahram Balayan, Artak Maghalyan, Marine Harutyunyan, Hovik Avanesov, Armen Karapetyan, Mher Harutyunyan, Taron Hakobyan, and Iskuhi Avanesyan. At the conclusion of the conference, a number of pressing and topical issues were discussed. Particular attention was devoted to the question of the realisation of the right to the collective return of the Armenians of Artsakh, which occupied a central place in the ensuing discussions.