'CILICIA' REACHES FINAL DESTINATION IN LONDON

23/08/2005
AZG Armenian Daily
By Ruzan Poghosian

"Cilicia" completed the second stage of its "Navigation in 7 Seas," reaching Portsmouth. The trip lasted about a year.

RA President Robert Kocharian send a congratulation massage to Karen Balayan, the captain of the ship, and the crew. The message says the following: "Overcoming long distances and hazards, you proudly sailed under the flag of our motherland, displaying strong will and firmness." Arkady Ghukasian, president of NKR, said that it is symbolic that the first stage of the navigation ended on the eve of the 14th anniversary of Nagorno Karabakh's independence. "I am greatly proud of you, as well as all the Artsakhi people are. I am sure that your deed will be an invaluable phenomenon for the further generations and they will follow your example."
[...]
Yervand Zakaryan, Yerevan mayor, also congratulated the crew of the ship. "This historical event let the flag of the independent Armenia wave in the Atlantic Ocean after 800 years," he said.

{See also http://www.ayasclub.com and http://www.cilicia.de}

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.