On December 18, the 5^th joint sitting of the RA NA Standing Committee on Foreign Relations and the International Affairs Committee of the RF Federal Assembly Federation Council was held in Yerevan Co-chaired by the Chairman of the RA NA Standing Committee on Foreign Relations Ruben Rubinyan and the Chairman of the International Affairs Committee of the RF Federal Assembly Federation Council Konstantin Kosachev.

Welcoming the Russian parliamentarians’ visit to the RA National Assembly the Chairman of the RA NA Standing Committee on Foreign Relations Ruben Rubinyan, highlighted the availability of similar format of cooperation at parliamentary level as an effective impetus for the stable and dynamic development of parliamentary relations between Armenia and Russia.

Touching upon the high level of the Armenian-Russian inter-parliamentary relations, the Committee Chairman Ruben Rubinyan emphasized the holding of the 32nd sitting of the Inter-Parliamentary Committee on Cooperation between the RA NA and the RF Federal Assembly the Black Castle of Gyumri, during which issues on harmonization and approximation of the national legislations in the EEU framework, as well as the cultural, humanitarian cooperation between the two countries were discussed..

The Chairman of the RA NA Standing Committee on Foreign Relations Ruben Rubinyan also attached importance to the coordinated cooperation between Armenia and Russia on the international different platforms.

The Committee Chairman underlined the efforts and the role of Russia as the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair country in the peaceful settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict and ensuring peace and stability in the region.

The Chairman of the International Affairs Committee of the RF Federal Assembly Federation Council Konstantin Kosachev also made welcoming remarks. Highlighting the tradition of holding the joint sitting, the Committee Chairman underlined with satisfaction the efficiency of cooperation of the profile committees conditioned by the opportunity of having open and transparent discussions.

The RA NA Vice President Alen Simonyan also stressed the tradition of holding the joint sitting in similar format.

The items included in the agenda of the joint sittings of the Committees referred to the challenges of the global and regional security in the South Caucasus, the terrorism, the illegal turnover of drugs and illegal migration, as well as the fight against chemical and biological terrorist actions, the legislative provision of Eurasian integration processes. In the context of the preparation of the 75^th anniversary of the Great Patriotic War the items of the distortion of the history, the heroization of Nazism, as well as the fight against the manifestations of neo-Nazism have also been discussed, which promote the xenophobia and intolerance.

The Chairman of the RA NA Standing Committee on Foreign Relations Ruben Rubinyan, the members Edmon Marukyan, Arman Abovyan, Anush Begloian, the Chairman of the International Affairs Committee of the RF Federal Assembly Federation Council Konstantin Kosachev, the members of the same Committee Vladimir Lakunin and Bair Zhamsuyev made reports.

At the sitting other items of mutual interest were discussed.

According to the results of the joint sitting the parties adopted a joint statement.