YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian hosted Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his delegation, the Presidential Office told Armenpress.

The Russian FM arrived in Armenia on an official visit on November 10.

Welcoming the guest both as a high-ranking official of an allied state and an old friend, President Sarkissian said the relations between Armenia and Russia are dynamically developing. He stated that Sergey Lavrov as a foreign minister played a key role in the strengthening of the Armenian-Russian friendship. The Armenian President remembered his first meeting with Mr. Lavrov 25 years ago in New York when the latter was serving as Russia’s permanent representative in the UN, and thanked the Russian FM for the support provided to the Armenian diplomats in the UN.

President Sarkissian conveyed his warm greetings to the Russian President Vladimir Putin and readiness to see him again in Armenia.

In his turn the Russian FM thanked for the warm welcome and also conveyed the warm wishes of the Russian leader to the Armenian President. “This shows our firm commitment to deepen the allied relations and strategic partnership in all spheres”, the Russian FM said.

Talking about the cooperation prospects, President Sarkissian introduced several events to take place in Armenia next year within the frames of presidential initiatives, such as the Armenian Summit of Minds, STARMUS 6th international festival. In particular, Armen Sarkissian touched upon the ATOM (Advanced Tomorrow) presidential initiative on science and technology development in Armenia. The program aims at bringing major foreign technological companies to Armenia making the country one of the leading centers in artificial intelligence and math modeling. “We expect an active cooperation also with the Russian companies and educational institutions on the sidelines of this project”, the Armenian President said.

The Russian FM welcomed all these initiatives which are directed for expanding the bilateral contacts and strengthening the relations.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan