Rustavi-2 TV, Tbilisi, Georgia
Feb 24 2009

Armenia won’t recognize Georgia’s breakaway regions – premier

[Presenter] Georgian-Armenian relations, the neighbourhood policy and
the resolution of existing problems were discussed today at the
Georgian parliament speaker’s meetings with Armenian officials in
Yerevan. Davit Bakradze has already spoken to the country’s prime
minister [Tigran Sargsyan] and parliament speaker [Hovik Abrahamyan].

Tigran Sargsyan said that Armenia will stake out a neutral position
when regarding the recognition of [Georgia’s] separatist regions. The
construction of the Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku railway and customs
issues were also discussed.

After meeting the prime minister and parliament speaker, Davit
Bakradze spoke to [Patriarch] Garegin II [head of the Armenian
Apostolic Church]. He also attended an exhibition of works by [Sergey]
Parajanov [Georgia-born ethnic Armenian director and
artist]. Tomorrow, Bakradze will meet the Armenian president [Serzh
Sargsyan].

[Bakradze, addressing the Armenian parliament in Georgian] There is no
hiding the fact that to this day there exist issues between our
countries that have not been fully resolved – and this is a normal
phenomenon in relations between two neighbouring countries. I am
convinced that, despite attempts by certain forces to take advantage
of these complications in order to promote a lack of understanding
between us, through constructive dialogue and by applying a consistent
approach, we will easily resolve all problematic issues. The
historical ties between our two countries and our common values and
interests will bring us to a common vision for the resolution of these
issues that will further strengthen and shore up the existing
cooperation and friendly relations between our countries.

[Tigran Sargsyan, interviewed, in Russian with Georgian translation
superimposed] Armenia’s official position regarding South Ossetia and
Abkhazia is absolutely open and clear: we are maintaining neutrality,
just as Georgia has declared a neutral position in regard to Nagornyy
Karabakh.