On Tuesday 2 December, the European Union and Armenia adopted their new strategic agenda for their partnership.
This new partnership “is a shared ambition to work on many more areas together. This includes [Armenian] reforms, including strengthening the Rule of law, diversifying and modernising the Armenian economy, but also cooperation regarding visa liberalisation and security, for example”, explained EU High Representative Kaja Kallas at the end of the Partnership Council in Brussels.
European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos also highlighted connectivity in terms of transport, energy and digital technology, announcing discussions on the creation of a special quadrilateral working group – Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey and the EU – concerning the construction of connectivity infrastructures.
“We are entering a more ambitious phase, with shared vision and responsibility to further deliver meaningful results for our citizens”, declared Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan. He said that this was “not the limit of [his country’s] ambitions”, referring to the law on EU membership passed by Armenia’s parliament in March.
Moreover, the High Representative announced €15 million in European aid to consolidate peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia and strengthen the country’s resilience. “This will fund a variety of initiatives, including demining training and equipment, as well as regional confidence-building measures”, said Ms Kallas, adding that the aid will also cover detection, analysis and response to foreign interference. Ms Kos pointed out that the EU had allocated €5 million to strengthen cooperation in the Eastern Partnership region and support civil society and independent media to detect, monitor and deter disinformation.
The Armenian minister will be back in Brussels on 15 December for a meeting with his EU counterparts to discuss, according to Ms Kallas, Armenia’s resilience, the integrity of its elections and how to work towards strengthening them. Legislative elections are scheduled for next June.
The first EU-Armenia summit will be held in Yerevan in May 2026, on the sidelines of a European Political Community meeting. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)