14:47,
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 21, ARMENPRESS. On February 21, the Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan received the Co-Chairs of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly Andrius Kubilius and Maka Botchorishvili. The head of the delegation of the National Assembly of Armenia to the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly Maria Karapetyan also attended the meeting.
The Foreign Minister of Armenia commended the dynamics of the development of the Armenia-EU partnership, highly appreciating the role of parliamentary diplomacy in that context. Ararat Mirzoyan also expressed gratitude to the European Parliament for demonstrating its principled position on a number of important issues for Armenia. The interlocutors also exchanged views on the prospects of further cooperation within the framework of the Eastern Partnership.
The Co-Chairs of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly commended the reforms of the recent years in Armenia in the spheres of democracy, the rule of law, and the fight against corruption. Both sides emphasized the holding of free and transparent snap elections in Armenia in 2021 amid a number of challenges.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia and the Co-Chairs of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly touched upon a wide range of issues on regional security and stability.
Touching upon the urgent humanitarian issues, Minister Mirzoyan stressed the need for repatriation of the Armenian prisoners of war and civilian hostages illegally held in Azerbaijan. The Foreign Minister stressed the inadmissibility of Azerbaijan's continuous violation of the norms of international law and the decision of the UN International Court of Justice on provisional measures.
The need for a full resumption of negotiation for a comprehensive and lasting settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict under the mandate of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship was also stressed.
During the meeting, the process of normalization of relations between Armenia and Turkey was also touched upon.