On 17 February, Armenian Foreign Minister Ara Ayvazyan, who was in Russia on a working visit, met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
As reported by the Armenian Foreign Ministry, the interlocutors underscored the high level of allied cooperation between Armenia and Russia, both bilaterally and within the framework of international organisations, regional security and integration formats. The holding of sectoral consultations between the political departments of the two countries and the maintenance of an active dialogue at various levels were deemed important.
The heads of the foreign policy departments of Armenia and Russia addressed in detail issues of regional security and stability. Views were exchanged on the implementation of the provisions of the 9 November and the ensuing 11 January trilateral statements. Within the scope of humanitarian issues requiring urgent address, Minister Ayvazyan stressed the importance of the repatriation of prisoners of war and persons held in hostage status, noting that the artificial prolongation of the issue by Azerbaijan creates serious obstacles on the path to the implementation of the trilateral statements.
Minister Ayvazyan highly assessed the efforts of the Russian side towards improving the humanitarian situation in Artsakh.
Also on the meeting’s agenda were issues related to the resumption of the peaceful settlement process of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Both sides emphasised the addressing of key settlement issues within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmanship.
