Association Agreement Negotiations with EU were launched in 2010

PanARMENIAN.Net - Based on the guidelines given by the President of the Republic, the activities of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2010 were aimed at ensuring favourable external conditions for the development of the state, strengthening its image, raising the efficiency of the protection of Armenian and its citizens’ interests abroad, presenting Armenian approaches in the international arena, deepening the involvement in international organizations and processes, further strengthening cooperation with partner and friendly states as well as settle relations with countries, with which some problems exist, Armenian Prime Minister Edward Nalbandian stated.

Thanks to the Armenian diplomacy’s efforts, in the process of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement, it became obvious that the Armenian approaches are in line with the approaches of the international community, which was reaffirmed in the five-sided joint statement during the OSCE Summit in Astana on December 1, in the Muskoka Statement by the heads of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair countries in the sidelines of the G8 Summit on June 26, in the Astrakhan Declaration adopted by the Presidents of Armenia, Russia and Azerbaijan on 27th of October, in the statement by the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group during the Almaty meeting of the OSCE Ministers of Foreign Affairs on 17th of July.

During the year the President of the Republic visited all the permanent member-states of the UN Security Council, had meetings with the leadership of those countries.

Last year was significant in terms of further strengthening the Armenian-Russian partnership and strategic relations, the culmination of which was the state visit of the President Medvedev to Armenia, negotiations with the Armenian President Sargsyan, the reached agreements and signed documents.

During 2010 the Armenian-US relations reached on a qualitatively new level, which was particularly marked by President Serzh Sargsyan’s visit to Washington DC, meeting with the US President Barack Obama as well as by the US State Secretary Hillary Clinton’s visit to Yerevan.

Negotiations with EU on the Association Agreement have started where an essential progress has been made. As a result of it, the cooperation between Armenia and the EU will be put on a new basis. Rapprochement with the European family continues to remain as one of the Armenian foreign policy priorities.

Multidimensional cooperation with neighbouring Georgia and Iran has continued. Foundations were laid for implementation of projects of strategic importance with those countries.