President Serzh Sargsyan, who is in France on official visit, met with the President of France Francois Hollande

Today, President Serzh Sargsyan, who is in the French Republic on official visit met with the President of France Francois Hollande.

The two Presidents noted with satisfaction the high level of the Armenian-French relations and underscored that historically formed cordial relations between the two peoples serve as a solid base for the development and further strengthening of the special interstate relations.

The parties concurred that it is important to maintain the high level of the political dialogue, work towards the expansion of the French presence in Armenia and increase the turnover between the two countries.

Taking into consideration Armenia’s membership to the International Organization of Francophony, the Presidents of Armenia and France reiterated their commitment to incessantly ensure broad state and public support for furthering cultural and scientific relations.

Presidents Serzh Sargsyan and Francois Hollande exchanged ideas on the regional issues and the NK peace process. Serzh Sargsyan expressed gratitude for the constant assistance provided by France to Armenia’s Eurointegration process.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the President of France Francois Hollande gave a dinner in honor of the President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan which was attended by the prominent members of the Armenian-French community.

The Presidents of Armenia and France made statements for the representatives of the mass media on the results of the meeting.

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Statement by President Serzh Sargsyan for the representatives of the mass media on the results of the meeting with the President of France Francois Hollande

Distinguished Mr. President,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

It’s a great honor and pleasure for me to be in the friendly France. Each time, I arrive to this marvelous country with a special affection, considering the unfailingly warm welcome and the atmosphere which reigns during our talks with the French leadership.

Historical ties of Armenia and France became an excellent foundation for our interstate relations. Our interstate relations, which are twenty years old, today unambiguously can be characterized as friendly and brotherly.

This time, I have arrived to France to tell the President of France, a good friend of the Armenian people and personally my good friend Francois Hollande that Armenia is deeply interested in the expansion of the agenda of the Armenian-French relations.

President Hollande presented concisely the topics of our discussions. I would like to add just two things: first, we would really like to see expansion of the French capital in Armenia because today Armenia needs it and, of course, to eliminate the repercussions of the global financial and economic crisis it is probably a small but still a good opportunity. Also, I would like to once again express gratitude to the people of France and its leadership for their watchful and principled position on the Armenian Genocide. I know that Mr. Hollande was standing at the origins of the draft law; I also know how considerate and thoughtful he is towards the Armenian issues and towards Armenians in general. We are proud of the fact that almost 500,000 Armenians reside in France and many of these Armenians have brought their active participation to the advancement of France. They are as much Armenians as French; they love equally Armenia and France, and our task is to use their entire potential to maintain our friendship eternally.

Thank you very much for the warm welcome and, certainly, I am very much grateful that you have accepted my invitation to conduct a state visit to the Republic of Armenia in 2013.

Statement of the President of France Francois Hollande for the representatives of the mass media on the results of the meeting with President Serzh Sargsyan

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Today, I have met with President Serzh Sargsyan, who is in France once again. I spoke with him about our strong relations, which exist between our two countries and two nations. Our peoples have been maintaining these relations for centuries; they have a long history, a history which had also tragic pages. Our two states, especially after the establishment of diplomatic relations twenty years ago, have been making consistent efforts not only to maintain the warm and friendly ties but also to make them practical and concrete. I can state with pleasure that the multifaceted cooperation is unfolding in the cultural and linguistic areas and our economic relations possess potential for a greater development. Certainly, France is the second largest investor in Armenia: there are over 100 enterprises functioning in Armenia. However the economic relations have a greater room for development, and as I have mentioned in the conversation with the President, through the French Development Agency this interaction should also develop in the areas of agriculture and transportation.

And of course at our meeting, we spoke mainly of the most important issue – the Nagorno Karabakh problem. In the framework of my responsibility, since France is the Minsk Group Co-Chair country, I have reiterated that we should do our best, France should do its best to bring the negotiations to their logical conclusion. At some point they stalled, however they must restart and go on up to the end based on the well-known principles – Madrid Principles, so that this problem gets a durable and I would say a final resolution. It is an issue within my scope of responsibilities, because France is a Co-Chair of the Minsk Group.

We have also discussed other international issues such as Syria, and considering the fact that regional issues pertain also to Armenia and because there is Armenian community in Syria, and some of the Syrian Armenians have already arrived to Armenia. I do know that with this regard Armenia should maintain a very cautious position, but at the same time we should think about a political transition.

We have spoken about Iran; I also know that the President is doing his best sending out certain messages.

And finally, I’ve noted how devoted the Armenians of France are to Armenia, moreover because nearly 500,000 Armenians residing in France had been brought here by chance, bringing with them their full talent which became a true riches for our country.

I have also accepted with pleasure the invitation of the President of Armenia to visit Armenia next year.