Baltic States – CIS, EU – Baltic States, Forum, Latvia, Legislation

Edgars Rinkevics and Edward Nalbandian. Yerevan, 12.12.2014. Photo: flickr.com

In his talks with Armenian government officials, Minister Rinkevics expressed Latvia’s interest in expanding cooperation and dialogue, both in bilateral Latvian-Armenian relations, as well as in the relations between the European Union (EU) and Armenia.

The minister also described preparations for the Latvia’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2015.

"The development of the EU Eastern Partnership initiative will be an important priority of the Latvian presidency. The Eastern Partnership Summit planned for May 2015 in Riga must provide a clear signal about the future of this initiative. We must be able to offer tailor-made cooperation programs, and a "road map" for each of the member-states depending on the aspirations and ability of a specific country to move closer to the EU. Latvia will be promoting cooperation between the EU and Armenia so that Armenia feels the benefits, noted the Latvian Foreign Minister. As the representative of the EU Presidency in the Council of the European Union, the Latvian Minister of Foreign Affairs will chair the EU-Armenia Cooperation Council that will be held on 20 January 2015 in Brussels. Preparation of a new cooperation treaty between the EU and Armenia is a priority on the EU-Armenia agenda.

The Armenian side pointed to the importance of the Eastern Partnership Summit in Riga and expressed its interest in further cooperation with the EU, taking into account Armenia’s participation in the Eurasian Economic Union. Armenia is interested in dialogue with the EU and expresses its confidence in values in the field of human rights, press freedom, independence of the judiciary and other fields represented by the EU, said the Armenian representatives. We respect the decision of Armenia as an independent state to join the Eurasian Economic Union. The EU and Latvia are ready for cooperation in the fields where such cooperation meets the interests of the Republic of Armenia,'' said Rinkevics.

The Latvian and Armenian delegations agreed on the need to develop relations in trade and economics. The possibilities of parliamentary cooperation were discussed during the meeting with the Armenian National Assembly President Galust Sahakyan. The president of the Armenian Parliament welcomed the establishment of Latvian-Armenian cooperation group in the newly-elected Latvian Parliament and expressed his hope that the parliaments of the two countries will interact actively.

The Latvian foreign minister expressed his satisfaction with the dialogue between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and expressed his confidence that the exchange of views between high ranking officials will continue in the future. The Minister called for the development of cooperation in the field of higher education. "Latvian universities offer high-quality academic programs for Armenian citizens willing to study", the minister said.

The situation in the South Caucasus region, conflict in Ukraine, developments in the events in the Middle East and international fight against terrorism were discussed with the Armenian Foreign Minister. Minister Rinkevics expressed his concern about the Nagorno-Karabakh. The Latvian and Armenian representatives agreed that this situation can only be settled by means of negotiation. "It is necessary to avoid all provocations and military activity,'' noted the Latvian foreign minister.