Polish News Agency PAP, Poland
March 12 2010

Polish, Armenian premiers discuss Eastern Partnership, economic cooperation

Warsaw, 12 March: The EU Eastern Partnership project, economic
cooperation and bilateral relations were the main topics of talks
between Poland and Armenian PMs Donald Tusk and Tigran Sargsyan,
respectively, in Yerevan on Friday.

Our meeting confirmed close ties linking poles and Armenians at the
level of nations, states and ordinary people, the Polish PM told a
joint press conference with his Armenian counterpart.

He added that the Armenian PM reminded him that Polish-Armenian ties
date back to nearly 1,000 years ago. Historic and contemporary
confidence is a rare and precious value in politics, Tusk stressed.

Tusk recalled that Poland was one of the prime movers of the EU
Eastern Partnership project. The partnership is aimed at closer
cooperation between the EU and its eastern partners, namely Armenia,
Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine and Belarus. For partnership
programme the EU had assigned EUR 600 million by 2013.

This is a project important for entire Europe, Tusk said. He said he
hoped for improvement in economic cooperation with that country.

The Polish PM said the two countries signed an agreement on Friday
aimed at boosting mutual economic contacts.

The economic agreement is a successive step (on the way to develop
cooperation — ed) but it surely is not the end of our close
collaboration. I am sure it will bring good results for Poland and
Armenia, Tusk said and expressed hope that Armenia would share with
Poland its experience in nuclear energy.

Sargsyan assessed that the economic agreement would help increase
investments in both countries. He added that an inter-governmental
commission would be set up to deal with economic and financial issues.

In Yerevan Tusk also discussed political stability in this region of
Caucasus. The Polish side, as always, support peaceful solutions to
conflict in line with the principles of the international law.

PM Donald Tusk arrived in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia on Friday,
after previously visiting Azerbaijan and Georgia.