Foreign Minister of Armenia met PACE President

On April 13, Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian met the President of Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Anne Brasseur, who is in Yerevan.

Welcoming the guest, Minister Nalbandian stressed that Armenia attaches importance to its active engagements in the activities of the Council of Europe.

The sides placed importance to the steps undertaken towards establishment of democratic institutions and protection of human rights.

Reflecting on the Council of Europe role in the field of protection of human rights, Minister Nalbandian mentioned that around 150 members of the Assembly joined the Statement of PACE on the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide, initiated by the delegation of Armenia.

On the request of the guest, Minister Nalbandian presented the efforts exerted by Armenia and the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs towards peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh issue. In this context, Minister Nalbandian reflected on the decision of PACE to draft a report on the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, stressing that one should refrain from creating parallel structures, frameworks or working groups, whose work may damage the Co-Chairs’ activities. According to the Minister, one should refrain from steps which could undermine the negotiation process in general. “This concerns especially such kind of rapporteurs, towards whom one of the sides, in this case Azerbaijan, expresses endless gratitude on the highest level for the continuous support to Baku's stance”, mentioned Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia.

The sides exchanged thoughts on Armenia-European Union cooperation.