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“It was a pleasure to receive Prime Minister Sargsyan in Brussels today. I would like to thank him for his visit. Not only we had a very good meeting, but he is engaging in very in-depth contact with several Members of the Commission. The relations between Armenia and the European Union are on the move. We discussed a range of these positive developments today,” President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso said at a joint press conference with Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan.
I have therefore encouraged Prime Minister Sargsyan to intensify Armenia's efforts in the area of trade-related reforms. We need to see further progress on the institutional and administrative capacity and also in regulatory approximation, before we can launch negotiations on this free-trade area,” he said.
“After discussing the issue with the Prime Minister, I now understand that our Armenian friends believe that these reforms are also a priority for Armenia. It is in Armenia's own interest. They are crucial for a better business and investment climate.
I would like to congratulate the Prime Minister for his personal commitment in this process of reforms. The Commission is also assisting Armenia with all the relevant support to meet the conditions, in particular through an institution-building programme and an Advisory Group. I have now discussed in concrete terms our commitment to go further in this work. In fact Commissioner Füle will work with the Armenian authorities to see what we can do more concretely in this area.
“I am pleased to announce that we will start negotiations on Visa Facilitation and Readmission Agreements in the near future. This will make it easier for Armenians to travel to the EU, and promote contacts in all areas.
We also briefly discussed regional issues. I stressed the EU's continued, strong commitment to promote peace, stability and reforms in our shared neighbourhood, especially through the solution of protracted conflicts,” Barosso said.
According to the President of the European Commission, the European Union supports a peaceful resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict on the basis of the principles of non-use of force, territorial integrity and the self-determination of peoples. The status quo is not an option.
“We remain seriously concerned about continuing armed incidents at the Line of Contact in Nagorno-Karabakh and the ongoing militarisation in the region. The persistence of this conflict remains a major impediment to development in the region. The European Union lends its full support to the OSCE Minsk Group and will continue to promote regional cooperation and good neighbourly relations through the multilateral track of the Eastern Partnership.”
“The European Union continues to support the Armenian-Turkish normalisation strongly. We encourage both countries to stay committed to this historical process. I am confident that there will be new possibilities for dialogue in the future,” José Manuel Barroso stated.