Unprecedented deepening of partnership, Armenia–EU Summit, and Yerevan’s Euro

EU-Armenia relations are closer than they have ever been, Ambassador Vassilis Maragos, Head of the Delegation of the European Union to Armenia, highlighted in an interview with Armenpress.

The EU Ambassador addressed a range of key issues in detail, including the unprecedented development of Armenia–European Union relations, Armenia’s European prospects, the importance of the European Political Community Summit on May 4 and the Armenia–EU Summit on May 5, both to be held in Yerevan, as well as the established peace in the South Caucasus and several other topics.

He said that cooperation is grounded in common values, a shared vision for the future, and clear respect for Armenia’s sovereign right to make its own choices about its partners. According to the ambassador, Brussels is not only providing political support but is also making tangible investments aimed at strengthening Armenia’s economy, infrastructure, and security, with the goal of delivering real results for the citizens of Armenia. The EU Ambassador emphasized that hosting the first-ever EU–Armenia bilateral summit in Yerevan, the day after the 8th European Political Community Summit, brings Armenia to the center of European political conversations in a way that reflects the current state of the relationship.

Armenpress: Your Excellency, given the recent unprecedented deepening and development of relations and partnership between Armenia and the European Union, how would you assess the current level of Armenia-European Union dialogue?

Ambassador Maragos: EU-Armenia relations are closer than they have ever been. Our cooperation is grounded in common values, a shared vision for the future, and a clear respect for Armenia’s sovereign right to make its own choices about its partners. The EU stands with Armenia to help build the security, prosperity, and stability that delivers real results for Armenian people.

What that looks like in practice is broad and deepening. Through the €270 million Resilience and Growth Plan, we are investing directly in the Armenian economy and its businesses, supporting Armenian companies to grow, innovate, and access new markets. Under the Global Gateway strategy, EU investments in Armenia are expected to reach €2.5 billion, financing the roads, rail connections, electricity and energy infrastructure that will give Armenia more trade routes, more partners, and less dependence on any single supplier. These are practical projects that improve daily life and economic opportunities in Armenia, not abstract political gestures.

The Partnership Council of 2 December 2025 adopted the new Strategic Agenda for the EU-Armenia Partnership, which sets out a number of ambitious priorities which will guide our cooperation for the years to come. What is important is to stress that we already deliver on this agenda with our work on Visa liberalisation which aims to offer – once benchmarks achieved – visa free travel to Armenian citizens for short trips to the EU and Schengen areas (up to 90 days), our security cooperation and our support to investments and economic development, for instance in Syunik where we invest in local infrastructure, private sector, agriculture, human capital, and tourism together with EU Member States (under the Team Europe Resilient Syunik Initiative).  

Through the EU Mission in Armenia (EUMA), we have over 200 personnel providing a continuous and visible presence in conflict affected border communities. That presence has contributed to stability and given people in those areas a real sense of security. . Let me also add that whenever incidents are reported involving the Mission, they are checked, documented, and shared with the Armenian authorities; the Mission operates with full transparency and strictly within its civilian mandate.

Recently, the Council of the EU also decided to establish a new EU Partnership Mission (EUPM) in Armenia. The mission will support Armenia addressing threats such as disinformation, cyber-attacks and illicit financial flows. Concretely, EUPM Armenia will provide assistance through strategic and operational advice as well as capacity-building to various ministries and national institutions on the development of policies to address threats faced by society and national institutions. EUPM is being deployed upon the request of the Armenian authorities and is completely separate from EUMA with a distinct mandate.

The EU-Armenia relationship goes beyond politics and economics. It is about people. Armenia has a wonderful and remarkable culture, thriving creative industries and a huge potential for specialised tourism which we also promote.

The upcoming EU-Armenia Summit on 5 May will be another milestone. Hosting the first-ever EU-Armenia bilateral summit in Yerevan, the day after holding the 8th European Political Community Summit, brings Armenia to the centre of European political conversations in a way that reflects where the relationship has arrived. A stable and prosperous Armenia is ultimately good for Armenians, good for the region, and good for Europe.

You have been heading the EU Delegation to Armenia since 2023, and you are quite familiar with the events and processes taking place in the country, what are your main priorities as EU Ambassador to Armenia?

My main priority has been to strengthen the relationship between Armenia and the European Union across all of its dimensions. I am pleased with the progress we have made. But I want to be clear: this is a partnership built jointly. Every step has reflected Armenia’s own choices, and when Armenia has asked for support, the EU has been there.

A particular focus has been visa liberalization, which matters directly to Armenian citizens and their ability to travel, study, work, and build connections with Europe. I am particularly pleased that this dialogue was launched, with huge political capital invested on both sides. I wish to stress that there has been strong commitment by the EU member states on this; they accompany the European Commission throughout the process from the very beginning. And progress since the launch of the dialogue in 2024 has been real and steady. Once the benchmarks in the Visa Liberalisation Action Plan are fulfilled and reform momentum continues, visa-free short-stay travel will be a realistic prospect in the coming years. This is ultimately a collective decision of the EU institutions and Member States, not a political reward for any particular government or electoral outcome. For Armenian citizens, visa-free short-stay travel would make it much easier to visit family, attend conferences or short courses, and explore tourism and business opportunities in the Schengen area.

The first progress report on implementation of the Visa Liberalization Action Plan will be presented at the Summit on 5 May, and as EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner said during his visit to Yerevan in March, if this reform momentum continues, visa-free travel in the coming years is a realistic prospect. Alongside this, we have worked to accelerate investment through a platform set up together with the Armenian government and financial institutions, driving implementation across transport, energy, local infrastructure, and the private sector.

I have also been closely engaged in supporting the peace and normalization agenda. The EU Mission in Armenia (EUMA) and the work of the EU Special Representative, who engages directly with Armenian and regional counterparts on the peace process and connectivity, have also been central to EU’s efforts. Looking ahead, cross-regional connectivity will be an increasingly defining priority. For Armenians, that means new trade corridors, more reliable energy at lower cost, and digital infrastructure that opens doors for businesses and young people. The potential of the connectivity agenda in this context and the new investments we will do in cross-regional connectivity – not only transport, but also energy and digital and the inclusion in value chains are only set to benefit Armenia, Armenian businesses and people and create new opportunities.

I wish also to mention our support to the private sector – very significant in the past two years – with more than €400 million invested in private sector investments and the creation only in 2024 of over 27000 jobs for Armenian economy, notably in SMEs, and that those supported by the EU increased their export by 7.2%.

I want also to stress the role of the EU member states – we have a strong Team Europe in Yerevan with more and more embassies being opened, in the past 2 and a half year, we saw three new embassies of EU countries opening, which shows the strength of the relationship. 

Throughout all our efforts my team and I have been most focused on ensuring that our work reaches the people it is meant for. That is also why, together with member states, we have also launched a cultural dialogue that brings together Armenian and European cultural actors, promotes Armenia’s remarkable heritage, and supports exchanges in the arts. Armenia has a distinct national culture that is part of our shared European heritage, and it matters to us to reflect that concretely.

In your opinion what has contributed or stimulated this level of development of partnership between Armenia and the European Union and what prospects do you see for the deepening of Armenia-EU links in the coming years?

The deepening of EU-Armenia relations over recent years reflects a genuine convergence of interests and values. Armenia has expressed a clear wish for closer ties with the EU, and the EU has responded with appreciation, commitment and concrete investment. That combination, political will on both sides and a shared sense of where this partnership can go, is what has driven the momentum. The path forward will be shaped by the work both sides continue to do together, through reform, through CEPA implementation, and through the Strategic Agenda for the EU-Armenia Partnership adopted in December 2025.

Looking forward, the foundations are strong. The visa liberalization dialogue, the deepening security cooperation, and the investments in connectivity and economic resilience all represent a relationship that has moved well beyond its starting point and is now operating across an increasingly wide range of areas. The EU-Armenia Summit on 5 May will be an opportunity to take stock of that and to set a forward-looking agenda for what comes next.

In December 2025, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaia Kallas signed a document on the strategic agenda of the Armenia-EU partnership. How would you evaluate this document and what role should CEPA play in this?

The Strategic Agenda adopted at the Partnership Council on 2 December 2025 is significant because it sets out, in an ambitious and concrete way, where the EU and Armenia want to take this relationship. It reflects the strong momentum that has built up and provides a framework for translating that momentum into sustained cooperation across political, economic, and security dimensions.

CEPA, the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement, remains the legal and structural foundation for all of this. What the Strategic Agenda does is build on that foundation and give it sharper political direction, using its full potential. I wish also to stress that many of the steps we are taking now are part of CEPA, for example the visa liberalisation, the work on the GI Armenian Brandy, the ratification of the Rome Statute by Armenia and so on.

But accelerating implementation means more consistent work on the independence of the judiciary, the development of credible anti-corruption institutions, and regulatory alignment with EU standards in areas like trade, energy, and quality infrastructure. These may sound technical, but the effects are direct. A business operating under predictable, internationally recognised rules is easier to invest in. A court system that citizens trust reduces the space for abuse. Armenian producers who meet EU standards can access 450 million consumers and access new customers in Europe. These are reforms that ultimately make Armenia stronger, more resilient, and more capable of charting its own course.

Mr. Ambassador, the declaration signed in Washington between Armenia and Azerbaijan in 2025 and the initialed peace agreement raised the situation in the South Caucasus to a qualitatively new level. In this context, how do you assess the current security situation in the region and what role can the EU play in ensuring and maintaining regional stability?

The agreements reached between Armenia and Azerbaijan on 8 August 2025, in the presence of President Trump at the White House, represented a potentially historic breakthrough after decades of conflict, and the European Union warmly welcomed them. We encourage both sides would swiftly move forward with the signing and ratification of the peace treaty when they judge that all conditions for a sustainable and fair agreement are in place. All of these arrangements are based on full respect for Armenia’s sovereignty and jurisdiction over its territory and infrastructure. There is no question of any extraterritorial corridor. Since August 2025, we also witnessed a series of unprecedented steps taken by both sides in the framework of their bilateral peace process, aimed at making peace irreversible and even more institutionalised. This new environment and the bilateral positive dynamics between the authorities of both countries should not be underestimated. This is laying the ground for long-term and mutually beneficial reconciliation. Much more needs to be done to bring both societies along as much as possible.

The EU has been working toward these outcomes for years, engaging with both parties and with international partners to help create the conditions for lasting peace. We stand ready to continue providing support and expertise as implementation moves forward. That includes also practical support, such as increased assistance on humanitarian issues, e.g. for demining, which matters directly to the safety of communities living along former conflict lines and to the longer-term process of delimiting and demarcating the border. Progress on the ground, in communities where people actually live, is what lasting peace means in practice.

On connectivity, the EU’s position here is straightforward. Reopened communications and reliable infrastructure create economic opportunities that give both Armenia and Azerbaijan a stake in maintaining peace. The TRIPP Implementation Framework released in January 2026 maps out, in concrete terms, how transit connectivity across Armenian territory can be established and how communications between Armenia and Azerbaijan can be reopened. The EU also supports Armenia’s “Crossroads of Peace” initiative and its interest in the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor. The Caucasus Transmission Network project, which will link Armenia’s power grid to Georgia’s and ultimately to the European grid, is a concrete step in that direction: it expands Armenia’s energy options, reduces costs, and reduces dependence on any single energy supplier. The EU also supports Armenia’s participation in the Black Sea electricity cable. These are not distant projects. Agreements worth over €313 million have already been signed for the transmission network alone, and the work is underway.

How do you assess the democratic and legal reforms being implemented in Armenia, the policy of the current Armenian leadership towards closer integration with the European Union, and Yerevan’s European prospects?

Armenia has made real progress on its reform agenda in recent years, and that commitment is something we genuinely welcome, particularly given how much the country has had to manage simultaneously.

The areas we continue to focus on are justice reform and the fight against corruption. A well-functioning, independent judiciary and a credible anti-corruption framework are not simply requirements for closer EU integration.  They are first and foremost demands of Armenian citizens themselves, and they are what give people confidence in their institutions. Closer integration with the EU is a consequence of this progress, not a precondition imposed from outside. Progress on biometric documents and migration management as part of the visa liberalisation process is one visible example of reform moving forward at pace. Broader work on aligning Armenian regulatory frameworks with EU standards in trade, energy, and services is another. These changes take time, but they build the foundations of a more competitive and more sovereign economy.

We regularly follow democratic reforms in Armenia. This is an important area. Whenever we have concerns, we raise them in the spirit of partnership with Armenia.

Democracy, human rights, rule of law and good governance are the core of the EU’s partnership with Armenia. Transparent, fair, and accountable governance, and an independent and accountable judiciary is essential for building trust and ensuring that citizens’ rights are protected. 

We maintain a regular dialogue with the Armenian authorities on these issues. They are key elements of the reform agenda under the Comprehensive Enhanced Partnership Agreement with the EU, as well as of the new Strategic Agenda for the EU-Armenia partnership. While progress has been made in recent years, we are aware that Armenian citizens still expect more, that civil society and some opposition voices continue to raise concerns regarding aspects of human rights in the country, including issues related to the widespread use of pre-trial detention. I wish to stress that respect for human rights requires the building of strong institutions. In this respect, I want to commend the work of the Human Rights Defender. But, a whole-of-society approach where government, opposition, civil society and independent institutions all play their part, is key to ensuring that nobody is left behind.

Recently, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan, without providing details, stated that Yerevan has applied for a third round of assistance from the European Peace Facility. Can you provide details on how much assistance Armenia has applied for and what stage the process is at?

Two assistance packages have so far been approved for Armenia – one at the value of EUR 10 million (announced in July 2024) and one at the value of EUR 20 million (announced in January this year).

We are about to deliver the first package of equipment consisting of a deployable tent camp which we will further scale up with the second package. This assistance will help to enhance Armenia’s logistical capacities and resilience.

We have not yet received any application for a potential new measure [but we have discussed ideas with our Armenian partners].

In May, almost the entire world’s attention will be focused on Armenia. Yerevan will host the 8th summit of the European Political Community, as well as the first Armenia-European Union summit. In this regard, in your opinion what political message does the holding of the European Political Community Summit in Yerevan carry and how do you assess the historical significance of the first Armenia-EU Summit?

Hosting both the European Political Community summit and the first-ever EU-Armenia bilateral summit in Yerevan in the same week sends a clear message about where Armenia stands in the European political landscape today. The eyes of the whole of Europe will be turned to Yerevan. Leaders from across the continent will be here, and Armenia will be host, participant, and partner all at once.

The EU-Armenia bilateral summit the following day then allows us to go deeper: to take stock of what has been built and to set out a concrete forward-looking agenda on security, connectivity, economic development, and people-to-people ties.

What I want Armenians to take away from this week is not simply that two major summits are taking place in Yerevan. It is that Armenia is a serious partner, at a key historic moment, and that the relationship has produced and will continue to produce tangible results for Armenian citizens.  It reflects the choices Armenians have made and the work they have done to preserve their democracy and sovereignty under difficult conditions.

The investments being announced, the agreements being signed, the progress report on visa liberalisation being formally presented at the Summit: these are not symbolic gestures. They are concrete deliverables of a partnership that is working. Armenia being at the centre of European political conversations this week is a recognition of that, and I think it is something Armenians across the country and across the diaspora can feel a real sense of pride about.

Immediately following these important events of global significance, Armenia will enter the pre-election phase of the parliamentary elections. In this context, what is the main message that you would like to convey to the citizens of Armenia?

The parliamentary elections in June are an important moment, and my message to Armenian citizens is direct: these elections belong to you. It is for Armenian voters to decide Armenia’s future, freely and without interference, and the EU’s role – at the request of the Armenian authorities – is to help make sure that is possible.

In practice, we support the institutions that make free and fair elections possible, from the Central Election Commission to civil society organisations and independent media. This is a long-term civilian mission working with institutions, not an election observation mission and not an actor in the campaign. The goal of our assistance is to protect Armenian sovereignty, to help ensure that on 7 June it is the Armenian people, and no one else, who determine Armenia’s future. And we are clear that none of this support is tied to any political party or candidate. The EU does not pick winners. We will work with whichever government the Armenian people choose, on the basis of the same principles and the same agenda. Who wins is entirely a matter for Armenian voters, and I encourage people to exercise this right, and not allow to be convinced by disinformation narratives that the Armenian people have no say – they and only they do.

What we do care about is that the process is credible, that citizens can make their choices freely, and that the outcome reflects the genuine will of the Armenian people. That is what democratic elections mean, and it is what Armenia deserves.