Tigran Sargsyan: `A new page opens for the Armenian- Czech relations’

PRAGUE, MAY 8, ARMENPRESS: Within the framework of the working visit
to the Czech Republic RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan met today with
his Czech counterpart Jan Fischer in Prague. In honor of RA Prime
Minister and his spouse, Jan Fischer served a working dinner at his
villa in Kramari village. During the meeting the Prime Ministers of
the two countries discussed issues on improving and deepening the
relations between the states, boosting the economic cooperation and
working out of development programs in the spheres of energy,
machine-tool construction, chemical industry, education, tourism and
culture. The parties stated that the cooperation is quite promising
and has a great potential. They mentioned that there is an opportunity
to deepen and advance the bilateral relations.

Tigran Sargsyan and Jan Fischer touched upon regional issues, as well
as issues on the relations of Armenia and the European Union, Armenia
and EU Eastern Partnership program.

At the request of reporters, RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan summing
up the results of the working visit and the meeting of the European
People’s Party Bureau Group highlighted the issue of the associative
membership of Armenia to the European People’s Party. `During the
meeting with the Bureau of EPP group I stressed the main theses which
account for the necessity of cooperation between the Armenian
Republican Party and the European People’s Party. The cooperation will
grant the opportunity of getting acquainted with the broad experience
of EPP, with the reforms implemented in Europe and the values, which
serve as a ground for these reforms,’ RA Prime Minister Tigran
Sargsyan mentioned. He said it was the most important issue of the
agenda of the EPP Bureau and currently it has been registered that the
Armenian side has already started the cooperation with that
significant political unit of Europe.

`As far as we are currently presenting our problems, concerns and the
values, which serve as a basis for the reforms the Armenian Republican
Party is carrying out in Armenia, on the other hand, we are interested
in the problems and concerns of our European partners and the European
Parliament,’ Tigran Sargsyan said. According to him, the meeting in
Karlovy Vary was an opportunity to contact with the members of the EPP
Bureau, to hear their individual opinions on the current political
field of Europe, the system of values, difficulties they experienced
on their way of defending those values. `We are interested in all
these issues, as Europe itself has a number of problems: our partners
are concerned with the future of the united Europe, too, especially,
there are strong common discussions on values, worrying phenomena and
circumstances. It is of great importance to us to get acquainted with
the primary problems and issues worrying our political friends. Issues
on collaboration between the Western and Eastern parts become clearer
if we observe the phenomenon from this position,’ Tigran Sargsyan
said.

According to him, the new Eastern Partnership initiative, currently
being worked out, involves 6 ex-Soviet Union republics and implies
opportunities of learning the lessons of the past and planning a new
strategy, new agenda, so that the cooperation corrects the mistakes,
failures of the previous phase. `From this viewpoint the concerns of
our partners became more understandable for us, on the other hand,
this helps us make clearer our position, our expectations from the new
Neighborhood program and the targets we want to see as the basis of
the program,’ Tigran Sargsyan said.

In answer to the question about the Turkish forces, which are
cooperating with the EPP, and the possible promotion of peace and
stability in the region by the EPP, the Prime Minister informed that
there are groups and coordinators within the EPP, which implement
works in that direction, especially in the direction of the EU-Turkey
cooperation, and are trying to design the system of values for
justifying Turkey’s membership to the EU.

`During the closed discussions they were interested in the attitude of
the Republic of Armenia and ARP toward the membership of Turkey. From
this viewpoint we stress the reforms ongoing in Turkey and we can say
for sure that quite strong reforms have been implemented in that
country in the recent decade. There are thousands of intellectuals in
Turkey, who accept the fact of the Genocide and express their thoughts
over it without being embarrassed. This inspires us hope that sooner
or later the historical fact will be recognized by Turkey,’ RA Prime
Minister mentioned.

He said that naturally the reforms assisted by the EU have a good
influence on this process, because the investment of the European
values in Turkey- freedom of speech, tolerance and a number of other
ideas propagandized by EPP will create more favorable conditions.
According to him, on one hand accepting this system of values Turkey
will recognize the fact of Genocide, on the other hand, naturally,
having a neighbor state living with democratic values, means having a
predictable neighbor.

`This creates a more favorable atmosphere for Armenia and this is our
most important address: implementation of the Neighborhood project is
a promotion to integrative processes in the region,’ he mentioned.

As to the meeting with the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic Jan
Fischer, Tigran Sargsyan said that this meeting is agreed with the
opening of `a new page, new phase’ in the Armenian- Czech relations.

`Jan Fischer is going to visit Armenia. During this working meeting we
had an opportunity to make clearer the agenda of the Armenian- Czech
relations including the economic, and political issues, which are of
mutual interest. I think that a clearly defined agenda will give an
opportunity to make the visit of the Czech Prime Minister more
efficient and to make arrangements for forming a favorable field for
cooperation between our two countries,’ RA Prime Minister Tigran
Sargsyan said. He said it refers to signing agreements, making clear
the legislature on protecting investments and avoiding double
taxation. `I suppose we can make clear the spheres, which are of some
interest to the private sector as well,’ RA Prime Minister Tigran
Sargsyan added.