A meeting between the President of the Republic and NATO Secretary-General took place at the Presidential Residence

A meeting between President Vahagn Khachaturyan and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg took place at the Residence of the President of the Republic.

Welcoming the guests, the President said:

"I am pleased to greet you and your delegation in Armenia. Your visit is important in the sense that it once again confirms the continuity and importance of Armenia-NATO cooperation.

Armenia has a history of more than 30 years of cooperation with NATO. Since 1994, an institutional cooperation has already been formed between NATO and Armenia, which mainly aimed at increasing the stability and potential of Armenia, as well as contributing to the establishment of democratic institutions. All this is much more relevant for Armenia today. We are the country that is trying to do everything to establish real peace in the region. I would like to emphasize once again that we are guided by democratic principles and ideas.

This year marks the 75th anniversary of the creation of NATO. When being created, NATO was centered around two main ideas. First, to protect the security of NATO member countries and the values that these countries profess, and these values are freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law. Now we are guided by these principles and are doing everything possible to confront the existing challenges, strengthen our independence and democracy.

Thank you once again for your visit."

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, extended thanks for the reception and noted:

"Mr. President, it is a great honor to be here. I appreciate very much this opportunity to meet with you.

As you mentioned, Armenia is a long-standing partner of NATO dating 30 years back.

Since then we have worked as close partners supporting and helping each other.

We are extremely grateful for everything Armenia has done in supporting different NATO missions and operations including the presence of Armenian soldiers personally in Kosovo.

A have met Armenian soldiers several times. I am always impressed with their professionalism, dedication and commitment.

And thank you for your recent announcement to strengthen your presence in Kosovo, which is important for stability in the Balkans.

Now we are looking into how we can further deepen our partnership, how we can do more."

Agenda issues of Armenia-NATO cooperation were discussed during the meeting. Reference was made to general regional realities and developments. In this context, President Vahagn Khachaturyan reaffirmed Armenia's full readiness and principled position in achieving stable and lasting peace in our region. The President emphasized that Armenia sees the development of the country and the entire South Caucasus region only through peace, the exclusion of the use of military force and the establishment of democratic principles.

At the meeting, ideas were also exchanged about the current realities and challenges in Armenia-Azerbaijan relations regarding the establishment of peace. Both sides emphasized the importance of a positive end to the peace process, which is in the interests of all the countries of the region.

"Armenia's sincere wish is to establish relations based on the principles of neighborliness and partnership with all its neighbors," President Khachaturyan said.

During the conversation, the sides stressed the importance of Armenia's participation in peacekeeping operations, which is an important contribution to the maintenance of international peace and security, as well as Armenia's commitment to further development of democratic institutions.