YEREVAN, JUNE 4, ARMENPRESS. On June 3 the NA President Galust Sahakyan received Ivica Dačić, the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Serbia. The Information and Public Relations Department of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia informed “Armenpress” about this.

Angelo Gnaedinger, Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the South Caucasus, Andrey Sorokin, the Head of the OSCE Office in Yerevan, and Andrzey Kasprzik, Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in issues related to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, with Ivica Dačić visited the National Assembly.

The Head of the Armenian Delegation to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Artashes Geghamyan, the NA deputies Vahram Baghdasaryan, Stepan Demirchyan, Artsvik Minasyan, Mher Shahgeldyan, Stepan Margaryan and the NA Chief of Staff-General Secretary Hrayr Tovmasyan also attended the meeting.

Welcoming Ivica Dačić’s visit to Armenia, the NA President highlighted it in terms of getting acquainted with the problems on the spot and discussing the issues of common interest. Galust Sahakyan has noted that Armenia highly assesses the readiness of Serbia in promoting security and cooperation in the Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian Region, which is also expressed by assuming the OSCE Chairmanship.

The NA President documented that the conflicts existing in the OSCE Region should be solved on the basis of the equal use of all the provisions of the international law and Helsinki Final Act principles. He has stated that Armenia highlights the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs' mediation in the process of the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict as a functioning and the only format of the negotiating process.

The NA President has expressed his concern over the position of Azerbaijan, by which the situation in the region is destabilized. He has noted that Armenia has adopted the path of solving the problem through peaceful means long ago; however Azerbaijan’s behaviour should cause concern to the international community, in particular, the OSCE.

The Head of the Parliament has stated that Armenia emphasizes the cooperation with the OSCE, as well as the support of the organization in the process of the democratic reforms going on in our country. The NA President has positively assessed the activities of the OSCE Office in Yerevan and the cooperation with the Armenian National Assembly. Touching upon the Armenian-Serbian cooperation Galust Sahakyan spotlighted the development of the inter-parliamentary ties and the activities of the parliamentary friendship groups.

Thanking for the reception, Ivica Dačić, the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, has stated that Serbia and Armenia are friendly countries with historical commonalities.

Highlighting the development of the relations between Serbia and Armenia, Mr Dačić expressed willingness to solve a number of regional issues and expansion of cooperation. Attaching importance to the role of our region in the establishment and maintenance of stability, he has stated that we should work in the mechanisms of security, stabilize the relations in the line of contact, in order not to have victims from both sides. Responding to the concern of the President of the National Assembly, Mr Dačić has noted that the OSCE Minsk Group should more actively work, keeping with the agreed principles.

Ivica Dačić thanked Armenia for positively assessing the OSCE activities and fully cooperating with the organization.

Speaking about the OSCE-Armenia, the Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the South Caucasus Angelo Gnaedinger has emphasized the role of the parliamentary diplomacy in the development of relations and has stated that there is a great potential in that sphere. Angelo Gnaedinger has also noted with satisfaction that Armenia is exemplary in the region for its democracy.