YEREVAN, JUNE 29, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan addressed the participants of the 7th Armenian-Russian Interregional Forum in Yerevan on June 29, the PM’s Office told Armenpress.

His address runs as follows:

“Dear participants and guests of the Forum,

I warmly welcome you on the sidelines of the 7th Armenian-Russian Interregional Forum on the topic of “Digital initiatives of Russia and Armenia within the frames of the implementation of the EAEU digital agenda”.

7 years ago, in 2011, Armenia and Russia have initiated holding the Armenian-Russian Forum which in practice has united the representatives of Armenia’s provinces and Russia’s regions, as well as societies and regional business.

We view this periodicity as another manifestation of the Armenian-Russian strategic mutual partnership. Moreover, today the interregional cooperation has become its inseparable part.

Our countries mainly face ambitious tasks to ensure maximum convenient conditions for our citizens’ life, business organization, release of new products, create additional jobs not only in capitals, but also in the regions. This is what the respective state programs are directed for and concrete steps derive from these aimed at presenting more favorable conditions to the region to implement joint programs in commercial, cultural and humanitarian sectors.

The rapidly changing realities create new problems, highlighting the need to develop new approaches most of which relate to the digital agenda. We believe that the digital agenda being implemented by our countries, that has been agreed within the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), will enable not only to cut the administrative overloading, give more modern and transparent nature to the cooperation, but also will significantly cut the time of the origin of the idea and its implementation, will minimize the expenditures conditioned by geographical distance.

We expect that the Forum, which is not limited to plenary sessions, but also includes a number of topical round-tables, will be followed by an increase of similar initiatives. And we will support these aspirations at a state level, by creating necessary conditions to reveal the potential, increase the efficiency of the interregional cooperation and sustainable development of regions.

The young generation should continue the Armenian-Russian cooperation and present new initiatives to expand it. We welcome the active dialogue and the student exchanges between the youth of our brotherly countries. The new Armenian government led by me is determined to give new impetus to the Armenian-Russian friendly ties, and the interregional cooperation in particular, since the country’s equal development is a priority direction for us.

I hope the proposals presented during the Forum will be applied in practice, will serve for solving the issues and will contribute to implementation of prospective business and investment programs for the benefit of our countries and peoples.

I wish productive discussions, interesting interaction and good luck to the Forum participants and guests”.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan