A private meeting between Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Russian President Vladimir Putin took place in St. Petersburg. In his speech, the Russian President noted: “Dear Nikol Vova, I would like to greet you once again and thank you for participating in these events organized within the framework of the EAEU and the CIS.
Yesterday and today, we have already exchanged assessments of our work. In general, everything went very well. I hope the atmosphere was good. But most importantly, our teams worked hard in all directions, prepared good documents, everything is signed, and everything is moving forward.
As for bilateral relations, they are developing. Our trade turnover has been regularized; we talked about it yesterday. If in 2024 it exceeded 11 billion, then in the first nine months of this year it amounted to 4.5 billion. This is also a strong indicator and gives us reason to expect we will increase it in the near future.
We also have good programs; we have already discussed energy, including nuclear energy. We will not go into details now, but we can discuss further. About the logistics sector as well.
During our previous meeting, you raised several issues we can work on together, including restoring old routes and creating new ones to open Armenia’s borders. Overall, everything is going well. Of course, there are other issues that we will discuss now. I am happy to see you. Thank you for being here.”
In turn, Prime Minister Pashinyan noted: “I am very grateful, Vladimir Vladimirovich, for the invitation. We spent a very eventful two days together in the EAEU and CIS formats. Of course, critical decisions were made. This concludes my working visit to St. Petersburg.
Of course, very important and, fortunately, positive developments are taking place in our region. And I would like to thank you for your support for the peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan. As we discussed on the phone after August 8, the achieved peace will open new opportunities for the further development of bilateral relations between Armenia and Russia.
This has already happened: trains from Russia are now traveling to Armenia via Azerbaijan, a historic milestone. And, as you have already mentioned, new opportunities are opening up. The agenda for restoring other railway sections in our country has already matured.
I am referring specifically to the Ijevan, Yeraskh, and Akhurik sections. These are the railways that connect Armenia with Azerbaijan, the central part of Azerbaijan with Nakhichevan, and Turkey, because a relatively active political process is underway. There are no political decisions yet on the reopening of these railways. But the situation has reached a point where preparatory work is necessary.
We are also currently conducting very constructive bilateral negotiations with the United States on the implementation and construction of the TRIPP project. These are truly significant and meaningful changes for our region. There are also many nuances here regarding our bilateral relations with Russia.
Today is a perfect opportunity to discuss these issues. Thank you again for the invitation, the excellent program and atmosphere, and the high-level organization of the working and cultural events. Thank you very much.”
