Sarkissian plans Moscow visit in first foreign trip as president

YEREVAN, APRIL 10, ARMENPRESS. New President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian, who took office April 9, is planning to visit Moscow soon.

"Naturally, I will be very interested in visiting Moscow as Armenia’s president in the near future. Armenian leaders traditionally pay their first official visits to Moscow. So far, no concrete date has been agreed," the Armenian president told TASS in an interview.

He noted that as Armenia’s president he saw it as his major task to strengthen strategic partnership with Russia, cement friendship between the two nations and encourage contacts between people.

"I would like to use this occasion to wish Vladimir Putin, who scored a landslide victory at the presidential elections in Russia, further big achievements in the development of the country’s economy, improvement of living standards in Russia and enhancement of its role on the global arena,"Sarkissian told TASS.

English –translator/editor: Stepan Kocharyan