President Vladimir Putin of Russia on Tuesday met with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Yerevan, where leaders of the Eurasian Economic Union member-states and others have gathered for the annual summit of the economic pact.
The two leaders emphasized that their countries continue to be strategic partners to one another, which both said were the result of the historic Armenian-Russian ties.
“I want to emphasize the strategic nature of the Armenian-Russian relations. They are not based just on the period of the recent years or decades, but the centuries-old history of our peoples,” Putin said.
The Russian leader expressed his gratitude to Pashinyan for what was deemed to be a successful EEU summit, which convened earlier in the day.
“It [the EEU summit] was really positive, including in terms of developing our relations with our partners of the third countries. And what is not less important, or maybe the most important for us, is that all the agreements between the member states of the organization have been implemented. You are the individual who made the maximum effort for such a productive work. For that reason I not only congratulate you, but also want to thank you,” Putin told Pashinyan.
Pashinyan evaluated Armenia’s presidency of the EEU, which concludes at the end of 2019, as a positive step toward advancing the mission of the Eurasian economic alliance and told Putin that his government, while satisfied with the ongoing positive ties with Moscow, is ready and willing to expand and strengthen relations.
Yerevan must strengthen ties with Russia