Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan on Thursday 13 June called on EU Member States that have not yet ratified the EU-Armenia Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement to do so.
“I encourage countries that have not yet ratified it to take further steps to accelerate ratification”, he said at a press conference with the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini, after the second Partnership Council between the two sides.
Thirteen Member States have ratified the Agreement (Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Latvia, Malta, Poland, Romania, Finland, Slovakia, United Kingdom). Armenia also ratified it in April 2018 and adopted, on 1 June last, the roadmap for the implementation of this agreement, which, according to the Minister, will allow it to be managed in a well-structured and targeted way.
Ms Mogherini said that the EU would provide additional support for the implementation of the agreement, including technical assistance and capacity building.
Mr Mnatsakanyan also expressed the wish that the dialogue on visa liberalisation between his country and the EU be launched.
The Minister and the High Representative also stressed the importance of the reform of the judicial system undertaken by Yerevan. “The EU is paying particular attention to judicial reform [...]. We support the ongoing work towards comprehensive judicial reform in Armenia, in accordance with the Armenian Constitution and international standards. An independent, effective and accountable judiciary benefits everyone”, said Ms Mogherini, recalling that the EU was ready to provide substantial support for this “essential reform”.
Additional allocation
The High Representative also announced that the EU will allocate an additional €25 million to Armenia for 2019, partly due to the country's democratic reforms last year, bringing the total allocation for the year to €65 million.
The Union is also in the process of identifying additional funding opportunities for priority projects presented by Yerevan to the Commission. These projects include women's participation, energy efficiency and interconnections, identity cards, police reforms and infrastructure.
See the Partnership Council’s conclusions: https://bit.ly/2KijIqw (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)