On Wednesday 11 March, the Armenian Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan, assured the European Parliament that his country intended to “pursue reforms, with the support of (its) European partners”, in order to move closer to European Union standards.
Mr Pashinyan recalled that in March 2025, the Armenian Parliament had adopted a law launching this process of harmonisation with the EU, a text which, according to him, constitutes “the political crystallisation” of his previous speech in the European Parliament, in October 2023 (see EUROPE 13273/21).
Aware that “no country can become a member of the EU without respecting its standards”, the Armenian Prime Minister also noted that this process was of a “political” nature, both for the Member States and for his country. And even if his country does not join the EU, Armenia will still benefit from compliance with European standards, he asserted.
The European Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos, will visit Armenia on 19 and 20 March to prepare for the first EU-Armenia summit, scheduled for Tuesday 5 May (see EUROPE 13764/19), the day after the European Political Community summit to be held in Yerevan.
This Thursday, the Commissioner for Internal Affairs, Magnus Brunner, will be in the Armenian capital to take stock with the authorities of Armenia’s progress in meeting the criteria necessary for lifting the visa obligation for entering the EU.
For Mr Pashinyan, “the standstill in political dialogue between the EU and Georgia”, a neighbouring country and officially a candidate for accession, is “the biggest problem” in his country’s rapprochement with the EU. He called for the resumption of a constructive political process between Tbilisi and the EU.
Last Friday, the Commission suspended visa-free travel for Georgian officials and diplomats in response to the democratic backlash in the country (see EUROPE 13823/19).
The Armenian Prime Minister highlighted the progress made in the Caucasus since peace was restored between his country and Azerbaijan, after the war over Upper Karabakh, praising in passing the involvement of the US President, Donald Trump (see EUROPE 13695/4).
“We will not allow another conflict”, he asserted, convinced that the region is “on the right track” to making peace “irreversible”.
He mentioned road and rail transit agreements, and said he was ready to extend them, in particular to facilitate trade in goods between Azerbaijan and Türkiye.
Finally, regarding neighbouring Iran as a “friend” and the Gulf states as “partners”, Mr Pashinyan said he regretted the situation in the Middle East caused by the recent Israeli-US attacks. He hoped that “diplomatic solutions (would be found) as quickly as possible”. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)