Baltic News Service
Oct 12 2018


 Estonian, Armenian presidents discuss Yerevan's reforms


Tallinn, 11 October: Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid, who is
currently on a visit to Armenia, on Thursday [11 October] met with
Armenian President Armen Sarkissian [Sargsyan] and discussed the
Armenian reform process as well as increasing cooperation between the
two countries in the digital and tourism fields.

"The cooperation between our countries is good and has also increased
in recent years," Kaljulaid said after the meeting. "Armenia is
experiencing winds of change and we are following the reforms with
great interest and keeping our fingers crossed that the momentum does
not fade," the president said.

Topics discussed at the meeting of the two heads of state included
Armenia's reform processes and the fight against corruption. Kaljulaid
expressed hope that Armenia will continue strengthening relations with
the European Union, the basis for which was laid with the EU-Armenia
partnership agreement.

Cooperation between Estonia and Armenia in the digital field has been
close, foremost with Estonia's e-Governance Academy. The heads of
state also expressed hope for further close communication and exchange
of experience in this field. The presidents also discussed cooperation
in tourism and the possibility of increasing those contacts, while
security issues and developments in the region were also touched upon.

President Kersti Kaljulaid will be on a working visit to Armenia on
Thursday and Friday. During the visit, the president is scheduled to
meet with the president and prime minister of Armenia and participate
in the international Francophonie Summit in Yerevan where she will
give a speech at the plenary meeting. Estonia is an observer member of
the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie and the summit will
be attended by approximately 30 heads of state. The main aim of the
visit is to introduce Estonia's candidacy for a non-permanent seat on
the UN Security Council for 2020-21.