On the sidelines of the meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in Almaty, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan met with newly appointed Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Mikhail Mishustin.

Nikol Pashinyan noted in his remarks:
“Dear Mikhail Vladimirovich, I am happy to meet you in person. Let me congratulate you once again on your appointment as the Prime Minister of Russia. Our countries and governments have always enjoyed good, warm relations. Nevertheless, I believe that we have a chance to upgrade our relations, and we will be able do so through joint efforts. Relations between our countries are developing consistently. The bilateral trade turnover approached the mark of 2 billion in 2019, and this good dynamics will continue in 2020.

Last year we managed to create good economic momentum. The figures were published earlier today: economic growth was closer to 8%; this is also due to our economic cooperation with the Russian Federation and within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union. I hope your government will support the economic dynamics that we have in Armenia today. I hope to host you in Yerevan in the near future, since one of the EAEU Intergovernmental Council’s meetings will be held in Yerevan this year.”

In turn, Mikhail Mishustin noted:
“Dear Nikol Vovayevich, thank you for your kind remarks and congratulations. I have kept fond recollections of my recent trip to Armenia, Yerevan, where I took part in the World Forum on Information Technologies - it was brilliantly organized. I want to say that Russia and Armenia are bound by close partnership and allied relations. We are collaborating in the field of energy, transport, industry, cultural and humanitarian affairs.

The new government is set to continue constructive relations and working contacts with our Armenian counterparts, including in the framework of the intergovernmental commission, headed by Minister of Transport Yevgeny Dietrich.

You talked about our trade turnover. Russia is Armenia’s leading foreign economic partner with a share of over 26% in foreign trade. About 2.2 thousand Russian enterprises are currently operating in your country.

Bilateral trade rose by 11% in 2018 to nearly 2 billion U.S. dollars. The growth continued last year, increasing by about 17.6% in January-November. This is good, we need to build on this positive trend and look for new areas for cooperation. I hope today we will be able to discuss the entire range of bilateral relations.”

During the meeting, the interlocutors discussed a wide range of issues related to the Armenian-Russian economic relations. In particular, Nikol Pashinyan and Mikhail Mishustin touched upon the expansion of trade and economic ties, the possibility of implementing joint investment projects in the fields of infrastructure, energy, industry, information technology and microelectronics.

Mikhail Mishustin emphasized that the Russian side is interested in discussing the prospects for implementing specific programs in the field of information technology. Prime Minister Pashinyan welcomed this initiative, highlighting the development of cooperation in this area. The parties stressed the importance of the activities carried out by the Armenian-Russian intergovernmental commission in terms of giving fresh impetus to cooperation.