President Serzh Sargsyan meets with Premier of PRC State Council Li Keqiang

President Serzh Sargsyan today held a meeting in Beijing with Li Keqiang, Premier of the PRC State Council. The parties discussed a broad range of issues related to the deepening of bilateral relations in a number of mutually beneficial and promising areas and to utilizing the full potential of Armenian-Chinese collaboration for the benefit of the two friendly countries. Those areas include energy, transport, chemical industry, education, science, culture, agriculture, aviation, tourism, infrastructure development, as well as a number of other areas.

The RA President and the Premier of the PRC State Council attached great significance to the activities carried out by the Armenian-Chinese Joint Commission for Trade and Economic Cooperation in terms of functionalizing the bilateral cooperation in all agreed areas. According to the parties, the ordinary session of the inter-governmental commission to be held in this summer in Yerevan must embrace all the promising projects of Armenian-Chinese cooperation.

Serzh Sargsyan and Li Keqiang expressed satisfaction with the progress made in bilateral trade and economic relations in recent years. Despite the considerable increase in commodity circulation, which exceeds half a billion dollars, and the growth of exports from Armenia to China, the interlocutors agreed that, nevertheless, the two countries should continue to make new accomplishments and exert efforts to utilize the full economic potential aimed at attracting Chinese investments to Armenia’s economy and implementing joint programs.

According to President Serzh Sargsyan, Armenia’s membership in the Eurasian Economic Union also opens up new and wider opportunities to broaden Armenian-Chinese economic relations.

At the meeting, the parties placed importance on the high-level agreements made during the Armenian President’s state visit to China and on the cooperation documents concluded as a result of negotiations.

Serzh Sargsyan welcomed once again the Chinese side’s initiative to restore the Great Silk Road and the targeted work being carried out towards it, to which, according to the Armenian President, Armenia could contribute. In that context, the interlocutors touched upon Chinese companies’ possible involvement in the construction projects of the North-South Road Corridor, the Armenia-Iran railway and a new nuclear plant.

With the aim of thoroughly discussing the opportunities for implementation of mutually beneficial programs in the areas discussed at the meeting, as well as in a number of other areas, the Premier of the PRC State Council instructed the minister in charge of those affairs to personally deal with the mentioned issues
Lastly, Serzh Sargsyan expressed his thanks to the Chinese government for the gratuitous assistance rendered to Armenia’s government which, according to the Armenian President, has produced vivid results and is highly valued by our people.