21:28, 29 May 2023

YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan had a meeting with the President of the Republic Vahagn Khachaturyan, ARMENPRESS was informed from the Office of the Prime Minister.

President Vahagn Khachaturyan – First of all, Mr. Prime Minister, I want to once again express my support to you and the Government regarding the policy that you implement together with the government, which is aimed at establishing peace in the region. In connection with this, last week was important for our political life, starting with the meeting in Brussels, after which you clearly expressed the view of the government of the Republic of Armenia, according to which we recognize the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and expect the same from Azerbaijan.

I think this was a very important statement and it was also a proof that we are not just talking about peace, but we are committed to finally establishing peace in the region. I think our neighbor should also realize this and appreciate the steps you and the government are taking. In fact, what the government is doing today, I mean the steps that are being taken both domestically and in the field of foreign policy are aimed at this.

As you know, I was on a business trip and met with various officials and my colleagues in Qatar. One of the most important meetings was with the head of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva. I was happy to hear her point of view, which I want to convey to you as well. They accept Armenia as a full partner that fulfills its agreements and obligations, a reliable partner in terms of financial stability and fulfillment of obligations. During our meeting, we also agreed that we will continue to work in the same manner. They are ready to make additional investments, provide additional financial support.

We recorded the same during the meetings with my colleagues, the Emir of Qatar, they are ready and waiting for our proposals. Qatar is a very dynamically developing country, it has achieved success in a surprisingly short time. It seems to all of us that it is only a resource-based country, but in fact, according to the logic of its development, Qatar is a country with a modern, high-tech, knowledge-based economy, and in the person of it, we have a willing partner for cooperation.

I want to assure you once again that I support and will support to the best of my ability all the programs that you implement, which are aimed at establishing peace in the region.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan – Thank you, honorable Mr. President, first of all, thank you for the words of support, as well as the invitation. Yes, we regularly have meetings in a public format, but, of course, we also have informal meetings much often: we discuss, consult, try to understand what are the best solutions for our country.

Of course, I agree with you that these public meetings are also important so that our people can see that there is institutional cooperation and interaction between different branches of power. On the other hand, it is very important that these mechanisms of government interaction work effectively.

In this regard, I can testify that a very constructive cooperation has been established between the president-parliament-government trio, which is very important especially in this period. I also consider it important that the policies of the government are discussed and consulted with the parliament and the president of the Republic, but of course this is not about responsibility at all. the government fully undertakes it and should undertake it, but knowing also the opinion of the most important institutions of the state on these issues is extremely essential.

I am also happy to report that in our meetings, in fact, such a trend has been formed: whenever we have met so far, we have recorded quite good economic indicators in our country. I want to express hope that this tradition of ours will not change in any way. In that sense, I also consider our cooperation with international economic and financial institutions to be important, because we are very zealous about Armenia's reputation. It is really important because not everyone researches the country in every detail. In many cases, they ask the opinion of the international institutions, or get acquainted with their published opinions. So we try to show ourselves as a responsible partner.

Regarding the regional situation, of course, today I had the opportunity to say that, especially after our last meetings, after the Brussels agreements, the statements made by Azerbaijan at least raise questions, and I think we should try to find an answer to a clear question, whether these statements constitute a step back from the agreements reached. I also think that we should communicate this issue with our international partners, because in all cases the reliability of agreements is an important prerequisite, because when agreements are reached and they are not implemented, of course, this is a problem in all kinds of relations, including international and interstate ones.

Mr. President, I will also share my impressions, information from the recent discussions and negotiations. Of course, we managed to discuss one part, now the process is very intensive, but I will also inform you about the upcoming plans, what is planned in our international agenda.