ARMENIA-EU RELATIONS IN A CRUCIAL STAGE

Armradio.am
02.03.2010 13:11

The Foreign Minister of Armenia, Edward Nalbandian, received the
EU delegation headed by the Foreign Minister of Spain, Muguel Angel
Moratinos.

Greeting the guests, Edward Nalbandian congratulated Muguel Angel
Moratinos on assuming EU chairmanship.

Charactering the Armenia-EU relations, Minister Nalbandian stated:
"The Armenia-EU relations are at a crucial stage today. The European
Union is a reliable political and economic partner for Armenia. The
Eastern Partnership Program that kicked off last year opens broad
opportunities for expansion of cooperation in a number of spheres."

Minister Nalbandian attached importance to the further deepening
of the political dialogue between Armenia and the European Union,
the signing of a free trade agreement, the easing of visa regime and
the start of negotiations on an association agreement.

Minister Nalbandian and Moratnos talked about issues related to the
expansion of cooperation between Armenia and Spain. The Armenian
Foreign Minister informed that a decision had been taken to open an
Embassy of the Republic of Armenia in Madrid in 2010.

Minister Moratinor reiterated the EU support for the Armenian-Turkish
process and voiced hope that the parties would ratify the protocols
without preconditions and within a reasonable timeframe and would
move forward.

The Armenian Foreign Minister informed his Spanish counterpart about
the latest developments in the negotiations on the Karabakh conflict
settlement.