EUROPEAN UNION ENCOURAGES NORMALIZATION PROCESS OF ARMENIA-TURKEY RELATIONS
Noyan Tapan
March 2, 2010
YEREVAN, MARCH 2, NOYAN TAPAN. At present the Armenia-EU relations are
at a turning stage. RA Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian declared
at a March 2 joint press conference with Miguel Angel Moratinos,
the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Spain, country
presiding in EU. According to him, Eastern Partnership launched
last year within the framework of the European Union opens wide
opportunities for expanding cooperation in a number of spheres. The
Armenian side attaches a special importance to signing a Free Trade
Agreement, entrance visa facilitation and launching negotiations of
signing an Association Agreement. "Rapprochement with the European
family is one of the main directions of Armenia’s foreign policy and
we have a goal to keep that way. We expect that cooperation will be
expanded by bilateral and many-sided formats in the European Union
under Spain’s chairmanship in this structure," E. Nalbandian stated.
He said that a wide range of issues related to cooperation between
Armenia and the European Union were discussed at the meeting with his
Spanish counterpart, thoughts over regional issues were exchanged,
including the latest developments in the Nagorno Karabakh settlement
process. "European Union’s assistance to the negotiations proceeding
within the framework of Minsk Group is praiseworthy," E. Nalbandian
mentioned.
Miguel Angel Moratinos, in his turn, attached importance to deepening
of the Armenia-European Union relations. He expressed satisfaction
that the Madrid Principles of Nagorno Karabakh settlement became strong
under Spain’s chairmanship in OSCE. The representative of the country
presiding in EU also mentioned that the European Union encourages
the normalization process of Armenia-Turkey relations and calls for
ratifying the Armenian-Turkish protocols without preconditions and
in reasonable time constraints.
It should be mentioned that Miguel A. Moratinos will also visit
Azerbaijan on March 2 and Georgia on March 3.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Disclaimer: This article was contributed and translated into English by Emil Lazarian. While we strive for quality, the views and accuracy of the content remain the responsibility of the contributor. Please verify all facts independently before reposting or citing.
Direct link to this article: https://www.armenianclub.com/2010/03/03/european-union-encourages-normalization-process-of-armenia-turkey-re/
