On February 7, within the framework of his official visit to the Kingdom of Norway, Armenia՛s Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan had a tête-à-tête meeting with Foreign Minister of Norway Espen Barth Eide at the Government Guest House.

The Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Norway continued their discussion in an enlarged format with the participation of delegations from both countries.

Following their bilateral meeting, the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Norway delivered brief remarks for the press.

Ararat Mirzoyan: “Thank you, dear Minister, for the very good and in-depth conversation that we enjoyed with you this morning. Of course, you always have my invitation to visit my country, Armenia, at any time convenient for you.

From the Armenian side, I would like to assure that Armenia is interested in deepening bilateral relations with Norway. And Armenia is also grateful for Norway's continuous assistance to its development agenda. When it comes to the South Caucasian affairs, regional affairs, again, Norway has always shown interest in those.

And today I had the opportunity to share some updates from our region and once again to assure that Armenia is committed to the peace agenda and is doing its best to establish a lasting peace and open an era of peace in the South Caucasus.

Armenia also attaches huge importance to its cooperation with Nordic-Baltic countries, including Norway. And we are also happy to see that there is reciprocative interest from Nordic-Baltic states as well.

So we are determined to explore new horizons in our relations, and we are happy to see that this approach is pretty much shared by the Norwegian side”.

Espen Barth Eide: “I am really happy to receive my good friend and colleague, His Excellency Foreign Minister Mirzoyan, here in Oslo. It's a very good relationship with Armenia, the people of Armenia, and with this Government.

And we believe that this Government has shown clear strategic leadership for the country in the interest of its people. Under very difficult circumstances, it has to be said, but really bravely looking forward and looking to Europe and looking for closer cooperation. And we are very happy to be a partner on that journey.

I told my good friend and colleague that Norway will remain an all-weather friend for Armenia and for your European aspirations. And we particularly talked about how we bilaterally, but also in the context of the Nordic-Baltic group, can support sharing our experiences and see how we can provide support on the several aspects of that journey, which is important for Armenia, but also important for the whole of Europe in a time of major change in our continent. Thank you.”