YEREVAN, AUGUST 29, ARMENPRESS. Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan and Russian President Vladimir Putin exchanged congratulations on the occasion of 20th anniversary of signing the Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance between the Republic of Armenia and the Russian Federation, the President’s Office told ARMENPRESS.

President Serzh Sargsyan’s congratulatory letter to his Russian counterpart reads:

“Dear Mr. Putin,

Please accept my sincere congratulations on the 20th anniversary of the conclusion of the Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance between the Republic of Armenia and the Russian Federation.

The past period convincingly demonstrates that the Treaty meets the historical traditions of friendship between our two fraternal peoples. It provides a solid basis for the progressive build-up of the Armenian-Russian alliance, which stands out for the active top-level dialogue, effective foreign-policy coordination, successful interaction in the sphere of security, as well as in the military and military-technical fields.

Bilateral mutually beneficial cooperation is expanding from year to year in trade and economy, energy, transport, innovations and mining areas; promising investment projects are being implemented, interregional and humanitarian ties are gaining momentum.

The strategic nature of our countries’ bilateral cooperation is being built on constructive partnerships at multilateral, international and regional platforms. Yerevan and Moscow are acting as highly committed participants and reliable allies in dealing with large-scale tasks to promote integration processes within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union and further strengthen the Collective Security Treaty Organization in the best interest of peace, stability and security in the South Caucasus and the CSTO responsibility zone, as a whole”.

In his message, the Russian president emphasized the old and rich history of the Armenian-Russian relations, the foundation of which has always been the strong ties of the friendship and mutual respect which ties the two peoples.

“The 1997 treaty signaled the beginning of the modern phase of the Russian-Armenian intergovernmental relations. The signing of such an important document created conditions for expanding dialogue and qualitative growth of bilateral cooperation in the commercial, scientific-technical, humanitarian and other fields”, Vladimir Putin said in the message.

President Putin praised the development of the Armenian-Russian relations, which have elevated into the level of allied partnership during the previous two decades: Moscow and Yerevan are effectively cooperating on the sidelines of the Eurasian integration processes, and are coordinating efforts for the security and stability in the region.

Vladimir Putin reaffirmed his readiness to continue joint works for further developing the entire complex of the Armenian-Russian relations – for the benefit of the two brotherly peoples.