On December 1 RA NA President Hovik Abrahamyan met the President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso and the members of the delegation headed by him. The representatives of the RA NA factions were attending the meeting.
Welcoming Mr Barroso in the National Assembly, the RA NA President noted that his visit to Armenia was the evidence of the fact that the RA-EU relations were at a high level. Hovik Abrahamyan stressed that the rapprochement with the EU and the European integration policy had been and continue to remain one of the most important priorities of the RA foreign policy. In the NA President’s word, Armenia had registered considerable progress in the negotiations over the European Union-Armenia Association Agreement. He documented with satisfaction that the RA-EU negotiations launched on creating a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area were going on successfully and Armenia was intended to reach to an end that process until the Vilnius Summit in 2013. Hovik Abrahamyan underlined that Armenia was also actively taking part in the works of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly of the Eastern Partnership, noting that the Armenian side was the first to greet the idea of creating Parliamentary Assembly within the framework of the Eastern Partnership. The NA President noted that Armenia had expressed wish to hold the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly in Yerevan in 2014, about which it was declared during the Summit and expressed hope that the European Commission would be represented in the Assembly at high level, which would make more effective the programmes being implemented within the framework of the Eastern Partnership. Hovik Abrahamyan stressed that the parliamentary elections had been held in accordance with the democratic standards, about which also witnessed the international observation missions, and the RA authorities were resolute to hold presidential election more transparent and in compliance with international standards in February 2013.
Thanking for reception Hovik Abrahamyan and congratulating him on the occasion of being reelected in the NA President’s office, the President of the European Commission deemed necessary the deepening of Armenia-European Commission cooperation in bilateral and multi-lateral formats. In political association and economic integration with the European Union he considered necessary the role of the parliament. Mr Barroso noted with joy that in the RA-EU political relations progress had been registered, and Armenia successfully continued to make reforms in different spheres. He documented with satisfaction that considerable progress also had been registered in the negotiations over the Association Agreement. Mr Barroso noted that the approximation of the legal field with the EU would have a key role in deepening of cooperation, and underscored in this issue the role of the National Assembly. The President of the European Commission welcomed the parliamentary elections held in May and expressed hope that the presidential election also would be held fair and transparent, which would greatly promote Armenia’s further progress and the deepening of the EU-RA cooperation.