RA President meets with India Vice President, Chairman of Upper House of Parliament Venkaiah Naidu

Within the framework of his working visit to India, President Serzh Sargsyan met with Vice President of the Republic of India, Chairman of the Upper House of Parliament Venkaiah Naidu in New Delhi.

Thankful for the warm welcome shown to his delegation in India, the President of Armenia highlighted the role of active inter-parliamentary cooperation in the strengthening of the Armenian-Indian interstate relations.

Evoking his warm recollections of the meeting held earlier this year with former Vice President of India Mohammed Hamed Ansari and the effective discussion of issues related to Armenian-Indian relations, Serzh Sargsyan expressed the hope that either Vice President Naidu would avail himself of the opportunity to visit Armenia, where he would enjoy a cordial welcome in the capacity of Vice President of a country with serious traditions of parliamentary democracy in the Asian region. President Sargsyan noted that Venkaiah Naidu’s visit would have a great impact on the development of interstate ties, especially in terms of strengthening inter-parliamentary relations.

Welcoming the high-ranking guest and his delegation, India’s Vice President pointed out that strong with ancient history and rich ethnic cultures, the Indian and Armenian peoples have many similarities and affinities based on shared values: they are hard-working, peace-loving and hospitable and, therefore, they need to continue building on their centuries-old friendship, as well as combining efforts to defy the emerging global challenges, including terrorism.

Vice President Venkaiah Naidu and President Serzh Sargsyan agreed that the two nations had common views and approaches as to the need of reforming the international structures, including the United Nations, so that they could respond to new challenges in line with today’s requirements.

The Armenian President advised that an Armenian-Indian parliamentary friendship group had already been established within the newly elected Armenian Parliament. In this regard, he stressed the need to organize both parliamentary groups and reciprocated high-level visits in a bid to boost the Armenian-Indian ties. The interlocutors pointed out that the two friendly countries’ delegates could successfully cooperate on inter-parliamentary platforms.

The parties next touched upon the prospects for bilateral trade and economic relations, as well as the developments and challenges in the South Caucasus, including the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process.

Vice President Naidu highlighted the need for settling all conflicts exclusively through dialogue and peaceful means.