Council of the EU COEST delegation visits Armenia for talks

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade of Armenia Vahan Kostanyan held a meeting with a visiting delegation of the Council of the European Union’s Working Party on Eastern Europe and Central Asia (COEST), which included representatives of more than two dozen EU member states, the European External Action Service and the European Commission.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade said in a press release that the meeting featured detailed discussions on the agenda of Armenia-EU relations. The deputy minister emphasized the Armenian government’s commitment to deepening its partnership with the EU, in line with the law adopted by the Armenian National Assembly on launching the process of European integration.

The significance of the first-ever EU-Armenia Summit was emphasized as a historic milestone in the development of bilateral relations. Both sides stressed the importance of effectively implementing the EU-Armenia Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and the Strategic Agenda for the EU-Armenia Partnership, and discussed prospects for developing cooperation in the security sector.

The parties also discussed the EU-Armenia Connectivity Partnership, including the importance of Armenia’s integration into regional transport networks and the development of inclusive connectivity.

The deputy minister presented steps aimed at strengthening Armenia’s economic resilience, emphasizing the recent adoption by the EU of a regulation granting temporary trade-liberalization measures to Armenia, under which Armenia has become the only country that, without EU candidate status or a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) with the EU, receives such an economic preference.

The delegation of the Working Party on Eastern Europe and Central Asia was also briefed on steps aimed at institutionalizing peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan, as well as opportunities for regional cooperation created by the established peace.