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On May 24, the RA NA Vice President Eduard Sharmazanov received the Vice President of the Bundestag of the Federal Republic of Germany Edelgard Bulmahn.

Welcoming Mrs Bulmahn’s visit to Armenia the RA NA Vice Presidnet has noted that Armenia is concerned about deepening the Armenian-German multi-lateral relations, including the inter-parliamentary cooperation in different formats. Touching upon Armenia-EU relations, the NA Vice President expressed hope that this year a document will be signed between Armenia and the European Union. Eduard Sharmazanov presented to his German colleague the Constitutional reforms occurred in Armenia and the process of the adoption of the RA new Electoral Code.

The NA Vice President Eduard Sharmazanov introduced Mrs Bulmahn the details of the war unleashed by Azerbaijan on the Karabakh-Azerbaijani border at the beginning of April, noting that it had been accompanied by a number of military crimes: not only the military were tortured, but also the civilians. Eduard Sharmazanov conveyed to the guest materials ensuring those facts, and some part of them, were published in the Azerbaijani press. In this context the NA Vice President has noted that the occurred tortures remind the handwriting of Ottoman Turkey and ISIL. Eduard Sharmazanov, as well as Edelgard Bulmahn positively assessed the meeting of the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Vienna and the reached agreements. Eduard Sharmazanov highlighted the availability of the mechanisms of trust for restarting the negotiations and expressed hope that Germany will be consistent in this issue.

At the meeting the process of the Armenian Genocide recognition in the Bundestag of Germany was also touched upon. The NA Vice President Eduard Sharmazanov highly assessed Mrs Bulmahn’s position on the Armenian Genocide, noting that recognizing and condemning the gravest crime held 100 years ago is prevented by the implementation of the possible new genocides against humanity.

Edelgard Bulmahn thanked her colleague for the warm reception and also highlighted the deepening of relations and mutual visits of the relations at different planes. Referring to the Resolution being circulated in the Bundestag on the Armenian Genocide recognition, Mrs Bulmahn noted that an attempt had been made in the Resolution to call the spade the spade and show the share of the guilt of the German authorities acting before in the issue of the Armenian Genocide. She emphasized facing the history by Germany and raising the realities from the depth of history and the overcoming of problems, as it happened in the issue of Holocaust victims. Mrs Vice President has noted that the goal of the messages existing in the Resolution is also to convey to Turkey.

Edelgard Bulmahn highlighted the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group on the NK conflict settlement and the implementation of the agreements reached during the meeting of the Presidents of the two countries in Vienna. She expressed hope that the ceasefire will be preserved, and the agreements won’t remain on the paper and will be called into life, otherwise, repetition of the situation will be, to her conviction, should not be permitted. She expressed agreement to the view of the OSCE Minsk Group, according to which, the settlement of the conflict should not have military solution.

At the meeting other issues of bilateral interest were also discussed.