Acting Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan received today the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov and the delegation headed by him.
Welcoming the guests, Nikol Pashinyan stated:
“Dear Mr. Lavrov,
Dear Colleagues,
I am glad to meet you and to welcome you to the Government of Armenia.
The relations between our countries are allied, they are built on the principle of strategic partnership, on the fraternal relations of our peoples. I am glad to note that in recent months our relations have strengthened even more, once again passing the test of strength.
At a difficult time, the Russian Federation came to our aid, helping to resolve the problems that had arisen as a result of the pandemic and the aggression against Karabakh. Thanks to the efforts of the Russian Federation, it was possible to stop the battles and achieve a significant reduction of the tension in our region. The presence of Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh today is a strong guarantee of Nagorno-Karabakh’s security.
I would like to emphasize the role of President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin in achieving peace in the region, as well as his efforts to create conditions for Nagorno-Karabakh’s activity.
In this regard, I would like to assure you that from now on Armenia will continue to take all measures to implement the agreements reached through the trilateral statements of November 9, 2020 and January 11, 2021.
We are also ready to make every effort to ensure a constructive dialogue between the parties on a trilateral format.
However, I must say that Azerbaijan’s actions do not contribute to the progress of the trilateral dialogue. Baku’s actions, which manipulate the issue of the return of prisoners of war (POWs), express territorial aspirations towards Armenia, and now they have begun to destroy the cultural and religious heritage of the Armenian people.
In this context, I would like to note with satisfaction the actions of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, whose recent statement is, in fact, a response to Azerbaijan’s destructive position.
The position of the Co-Chairs expressed in the April 13 statement is in line with our position on the main issues today. In this regard, I would like to emphasize our position that it is necessary to restore the peace process in order to reach a final settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, based on the principles proposed by the Co-Chairs.
Dear Mr. Lavrov,
Once again I greet you, and I am confident that today we will have constructive and effective negotiations.”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said:
“Dear Mr. Pashinyan,
Thank you very much:
From the very first moment of our visit to Yerevan, we feel the warm attitude of the Armenian people, our friends. Thank you for the attention you personally pay to our delegation.
Today, in the framework of our contacts, we had very detailed, substantive, credible talks on all issues of our bilateral relations, regional issues, cooperation in international structures, and once again stressed the special importance of allied relations and strategic partnership in all areas of our cooperation.
The political dialogue between you and the President of the Russian Federation, even this year of the pandemic, is quite intense. You have had two detailed contacts during the meetings in Moscow; you have had many telephone conversations. Vladimir Putin sends you the warmest greetings wishing you success in your country’s development and implementation of the agreements reached on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Next year we will celebrate the 30-th anniversary of our diplomatic relations, the 25-th anniversary of the Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance. It is a key document that defines our long-term relations, which is already being consistently implemented in all directions, be it economy, political ties, or military, military-technical cooperation.
We are committed to ensuring the security of our ally, the Republic of Armenia. This was mentioned in your conversations with President Putin, in the contacts that are regular and intensive between our defense departments. There can be no doubt here either.
We highly appreciate the agreements reached on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Thank you for emphasizing the role of Russia, and personally President Putin, in the efforts that led to the cessation of battles, to the coordination of a stable framework for further actions by all parties.
We most actively support the activities of the trilateral working group at the level of the Deputy Prime Ministers of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. It deals with the most important issues at this stage - the unblocking of economic and transport infrastructure, which will allow to end the blockade of Armenia not only at the political level, that has already been done, but also to ensure mutually beneficial cooperation of all countries in the region for the benefit of the common good.
Undoubtedly, we will continue our peacekeeping mission in Nagorno-Karabakh. The trilateral agreement ensures the powers of our peacekeepers to ensure the security of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh and to operate in the Lachin corridor. Our peacekeepers, of course, will do their best to resolve the remaining issues related to the determination of a clear line of contact and the provision of mutually beneficial agreements on its crossing. And, without a doubt, delimitation and demarcation between Armenia and Azerbaijan will be possible when all these steps are implemented.
Together with the other OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, we continue to work to resolve all humanitarian issues, including completing the return of detainees. We understand the symbolic, psychological significance of this step, we are sure that we will be able to solve this problem in the near future. It will create a positive, constructive atmosphere for us to move forward on all further issues of the final settlement. We will do our best to support the solution of these issues in all possible ways, in line with the implementation of the trilateral statements of November last year and January of this year. We will do everything possible to promote the activities of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs aimed at creating a positive atmosphere as possible in order to further resolve all other issues.
Thank you again for this opportunity to receive you. I am convinced that the results of our talks with you at the Foreign Ministry today will allow us to advance our allied relations in all directions.
Thank you.”
The interlocutors discussed issues related to the agenda of the Armenian-Russian allied relations and their development. They talked about the situation around Nagorno-Karabakh and the settlement of humanitarian issues. They exchanged views on the steps to be taken in the directions mentioned by the Armenia’s Acting Prime Minister and the Russian Foreign Minister.
Nikol Pashinyan drew Sergey Lavrov’s attention to Azerbaijan’s ongoing anti-Armenian rhetoric, referring to the, so-called, ‘trophy park’ opened in Baku, which features anti-Armenian, degrading demonstrations.
The Russian Foreign Minister noted the joint efforts to build a constructive atmosphere and dialogue in the region. Lavrov also assessed the talks with his Armenian counterpart as effective, shared his impressions from his visit to the Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial today, stating that Russia is always next to the friendly Armenian people.
The parties exchanged views on the regional situation and security challenges.
