Russian and Armenian foreign ministers discussed cooperation within the CSTO framework

Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia and the Russian Federation discussed in Moscow the preparations for the summit of the heads of state and interaction in international organizations, including the Collective Security Treaty Organization.

Ararat Mirzoyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, and Sergei Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, met in Moscow.

According to the website of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Sergei Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, said in his opening remarks, “We maintain an active dialogue between the ministries of foreign affairs on a systematic basis. We are trying to introduce elements of planning.”

“Today we will sign the consultation plan for the next two years,” Sergei Lavrov stressed. The Russian Foreign Minister said the coronavirus situation is improving and “we need to increase face-to-face interaction between our staff. The geopolitical situation requires us to ‘synchronize our watches’ and compare our assessments more often.”

According to Sergei Lavrov, the parties intend to discuss preparations for the summit of the heads of state. “Today we will discuss how to provide it with impressive content to give new qualities to our allied ties.” “We will continue, as Armenia’s key ally, to help you in strengthening your defence capacity and ensuring border security. As a major trade and economic partner and foreign investor, we will continue to seek new projects that will ensure the sustainability of our trade, create new production facilities and jobs,” Sergei Lavrov stressed.

According to the Russian Foreign Minister, the participants of the meeting intend to discuss prospects of cooperation within the CSTO, EAEU and CIS. “Armenia currently holds presidency in the CSTO. It is important for us to compare our actions against the plans that Armenia has presented to the participants of this Organization. The Nagorno-Karabakh and Transcaucasian issues always occupy a key place in our discussions on regional affairs,” Sergei Lavrov emphasized.