YEREVAN, MAY 14, ARMENPRESS. Speaker of Parliament of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan on May 14 received Head of the Council of Europe Office in Yerevan Natalia Voutova, the Parliament told Armenpress.

Speaker Mirzoyan said Armenia attaches importance to the cooperation with the Council of Europe, adding that the partnership with the CoE Yerevan Office is put on good basis. Ararat Mirzoyan highly appreciated the CoE support to the ongoing democratic reforms in Armenia. The Speaker also praised the dynamics of the bilateral agenda.

“For us the CoE positive assessments on the velvet revolution are very important. We are delighted to hear statements according to which the Council of Europe is ready to pass this path of reforms with the Armenian people”, Speaker Mirzoyan noted.

The sides also touched upon the Armenia-CoE cooperation development prospects, the Armenia-CoE 2019-2022 Action Plan. The Speaker of Parliament assured that all measures will be taken to completely implement the Action Plan.

Ararat Mirzoyan invited Natalia Voutova to participate in the parliamentary hearings on the prospects of applying the tools of transitional justice in Armenia which will launch on May 24.

In her turn the head of the CoE Yerevan Office highlighted Armenia’s effective partnership with the Council of Europe, stating that the CoE will continue supporting Armenia’s ongoing reforms and actions aimed at strengthening democracy. She highlighted the need for making changes in the Criminal Code, Criminal Procedure Code, the Code of Administrative Offenses and other laws and emphasized the key role of the Parliament in this reforms process. In addition, Natalia Voutova conveyed the CoE commitment to the Speaker to provide expert support for the implementation of transitional justice.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan