On January 30, the RA NA Vice President Hakob Arshakyan received the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Hungary István Jakab.
Welcoming the guest, the RA NA Vice President stated that the commitment to restore bilateral diplomatic relations after a long break proves that there is no issue that cannot be resolved through dialogue.
In the development of bilateral relations Hakob Arshakyan welcomed the opening of resident embassies of Armenia in Budapest and Hungary in Yerevan. In this context the role of the parliamentary cooperation, including at the level of parliamentary groups was underscored.
The Action Plan within the framework of the visa liberalisation dialogue has already been officially submitted to Armenia. Hakob Arshakyan expressed hope that Hungary will support that process.
The NA Vice President also presented to the guest the regional situation, the ongoing peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan. In this regard he referred to the joint declaration signed in Washington, the initialed Peace Agreement, and the TRIPP project. “The idea of a state policy to promote peace and cooperation was strengthened on January 22 of this year, when the RA Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan participated in the solemn ceremony of signing the charter of the Peace Council as a founding member at the invitation of the US President Donald Trump in Davos, within the framework of the World Economic Forum. It is gratifying that Hungary is also participating in this important platform,” the RA NA Deputy Speaker noted.
Emphasizing the return of persons illegally held and considered missing in Azerbaijan to their homeland, Hakob Arshakyan underlined that Armenia greatly appreciates the initiative of Hungary to resolve humanitarian issues. In December 2021, 5 Armenian prisoners of war returned to Armenia with the support of the Government of Hungary.
The NA Deputy Speaker of Hungary also referred to bilateral warm and friendly relations, which effectively develop both at parliamentary and Executive level. István Jakab in turn attached importance to the peace process, noted that there is no alternative for it. According to him, Hungary supports Armenia’s integration process to the European Union and is for the visa liberalisation.
At the meeting reference was made to the deepening of economic cooperation and promoting ties in a number of other fields. The role of the Hungarian-Armenian community in the development of relations between the two countries and peoples was stressed.