Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who is paying a working visit to France, later today met with President of the Senate of the French Republic Gérard Larcher.

Welcoming Nikol Pashinyan’s delegation to France, Mr. Larcher congratulated Armenia’s Acting Prime Minister on his birthday. The Senate President stressed the importance of Nikol Pashinyan’s visit, considering it another opportunity to discuss issues high on the bilateral agenda and outline steps to counteract the processes unfolding around Armenia.

Gérard Larcher advised that the French Senate is taking steps in this direction. He appreciated the fact the OSCE Minsk Group has intensified its efforts aimed at finding a comprehensive resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. “We raised the issue of Armenian prisoners of war with the President of the European Parliament, which resulted in the European Parliament passing a resolution that we assess as quite a positive step. We are not satisfied with this, our efforts will be continued,” Mr. Larcher said, stressing that Azerbaijan’s latest offensive move raises concerns about Armenia’s territorial integrity.

Taking the opportunity, Nikol Pashinyan once again thanked the authors of Senate’s resolution on the need to recognize Nagorno-Karabakh’s independence and everyone who supported the passage of such a document. “The document was of great importance in this difficult situation. The people of Karabakh saw that they were not left alone in their struggle. We hope that France will continue to play an important role in the processes initiated by the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, and the Minsk Group will be more active in dealing with the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,” Nikol Pashinyan said, noting that he had discussed this issue with President Macron.

The Acting Prime Minister introduced the steps taken to resolve the situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, and in this context, touched upon the latest regional developments.