Foreign Ministers of Armenia and France discussed steps aimed at further strengthening of Armenian-French relations.

On May 13 Minister Edward Nalbandian, who was in Paris on official visit, met Laurent Fabius Foreign Minister of France.

Welcoming the Foreign Minister of Armenia, French Foreign Minister congratulated Edward Nalbandian for his reappointment as a Minister of Foreign Affairs and noted that the relations between Armenia and France are excellent. He added that this visit is a good opportunity to sum up the achievements of the bilateral relations and discuss the ways of further development.

Expressing gratitude for the congratulation and invitation to Paris Edward Nalbandian noted that Armenia and France are united by privileged relations, which are anchored in traditional friendship between the Armenian and French peoples. And it is natural that after the reappointment Edward Nalbandian makes one of his first visits to the friendly France.

The Ministers noted that the bilateral relations are developing, there is a high-level political dialogue, broad legal framework and French companies have made significant investments in the Armenian economy. There is also an active cooperation in educational and cultural spheres.

Ministers Nalbandian and Fabius highlighted the importance of expanding economic cooperation. In this context Minister Nalbandian stressed that Armenia welcomes the growth of French investments and the new initiatives in this direction.

Foreign Ministers of Armenia and France touched upon the upcoming steps directed towards the further development of the bilateral cooperation in different spheres.

During the meeting the sides touched upon the Armenia-European Union relations, Armenia’s upcoming Presidency in the Council of Europe, the cooperation in the framework of the International Organisation of La Francophonie.

The sides discussed regional and international issues of mutual interest.
The agenda of the talks included the process of the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Highly appreciating the constructive involvement of France as a Co-Chair country of the OSCE Minsk Group, the Foreign Minister reaffirmed Armenia's readiness to continue the joint efforts with the Minsk Group Co-Chair countries aimed at exclusively peaceful settlement of the conflict.

The Armenian and French Foreign Ministers exchanged views on various issues of international political agenda. They also referred to the Iranian nuclear program and the efforts exerted to resolve the Syrian crisis.