SERZH SARGSYAN: ARMENIAN-GEORGIAN INTERSTATE RELATIONS SHOULD BE RAISED TO LEVEL OF TWO PEOPLES’ CENTURIES-OLD RELATIONS

Noyan Tapan
June 29, 2009

YEREVAN, JUNE 29, NOYAN TAPAN. One of the primary concerns of the
Armenian and Georgian leaders and governments should be raising the
interstate relations to the level of the two peoples’ centuries-old
relations. RA President Serzh Sargsyan reported at the joint press
conference with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili within the
framework of the latter’s official visit to Armenia.

According to him, solution of security problems in the region can be
only achieved through a dialogue, strengthening confidence, mutual
respect and cooperation. S. Sargsyan said that use of force has
never given good results and quick normalization of Georgian-Russian
relations is in Armenia’s national interests. "We have strategic
relations with Russia, we are connected with Georgia with thousands of
threads, we deepen our relations with both countries and do it openly,
without hesitation, without secrecy veil, frankly. If our relations to
some extent can assist normalization of Georgian-Russian relations,
we will be only glad, but we have never set such a task, our task
should be to deepen our relations," S. Sargsyan stated.

>From point of view of development of bilateral relations the Armenian
and Georgian Presidents attached importance to deepening cooperation
and carrying out joint initiatives, which will contribute to
decrease of the world economic crisis influence on the two countries’
economies. S. Sargsyan said that communication ways laying through
the territory of Georgia are of essential importance for Armenia’s
economy, therefore Armenia expressed interest in quick relaunching
of the land car check-point between Georgia and Russia.

He welcomed the steps undertaken by the Georgian government to mitigate
the socio-economic situation in Javakhk, to improve the infrastructures
and to create new jobs expressing Armenia’s readiness to support that
process. S. Sargsyan also expressed content with Georgian President’s
statement that Georgia will not pose obstacle in the issue of transit
of Armenian goods to RF, moreover, it will assist that process.

S. Sargsyan informed his Georgian counterpart about the
Nagorno Karabakh problem, as well as normalization prospects of
Armenian-Turkish relations.

In his words, regional countries should find cooperation verges in
spite of the disagreements."Armenia is interested in having a peaceful,
stable, and prosperous neighbor, Georgia, with which we have not only
common past, but also common future," S. Sargsyan said.

The two countries’ leaders arranged to make active the contacts,
students’ exchanges, cultural contacts. A successful example of it is
the Days of Georgian Culture held this year in Armenia and the Armenian
Cultural Program planned next year in Georgia. They also arranged to
hold annual Armenian-Georgian sports games, Armenian-Georgian olympiad
of pupils.