18:44,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 19, ARMENPRESS. We should stress that this year is special for our bilateral relations as we mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. During the past three decades, our states have made important efforts aimed at developing high-level political dialogue and mutually beneficial cooperation.

Armenian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ararat Mirzoyan said the abovesaid on January 19, in Zagreb, during a joint press conference with the Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman.

Foreign Minister Mirzoyan expressed satisfaction, noting that the recent reciprocal visits and active interactions reflect the positive dynamics of the bilateral relations as well as the readiness to further enhance the agenda, deepen the cooperation in various fields and different platforms, and, of course, strengthen the ties between the two friendly nations.

“During our discussions today, we touched upon a number of issues of bilateral agenda and possibilities to develop cooperation in different sectors, including economy, culture, IT, tourism and education. Along with the development of the political dialogue, there is huge untapped potential in the economic sphere. While the business forum held in Yerevan during the Minister's visit last February was of particular importance, we are keen to promote and expand the trade and economic cooperation to achieve tangible outcomes,” said FM Mirzoyan.

Mirzoyan noted that they discussed the ongoing processes and steps undertaken to further enhance the Armenia-EU partnership.

“The aspirations of our citizens to see the further deepening of this relationship are based on the shared values upheld by Armenia, Croatia, and the European Union, particularly in the realms of democracy, protection of human rights and other fundamental principles.

At the same time, our commitment derives from the vision of a better and more secure environment for our citizens. Thus, with my Croatian counterpart we looked into the whole spectrum of the Armenia-EU relations covering our democratic reform agenda, people-to-people contacts, visa liberalization dialogue, economic cooperation as well as security matters. In this context, I would like to underline that the Armenia-EU partnership is being enhanced with new dimensions, namely the EU monitoring mission and security dialogue,’’ noted Armenian Foreign Minister.

“Today, we also had the chance to touch upon issues of cooperation in multilateral fora, within international organizations where Armenia and Croatia already have or will further benefit from closer cooperation,” added Mirzoyan.