YEREVAN (RFE/RL) — Senior Armenian and Israeli diplomats discussed the sometimes uneasy relationship between their countries during two days of consultations that ended in Yerevan on Tuesday.
The Armenian Foreign Ministry said the two negotiating teams were headed by Deputy Foreign Minister Arman Kirakossian and Pinchas Avivi, a high-level Israeli Foreign Ministry official coordinating ties with Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union.
“During the consultations the two sides discussed issues related to Armenia-Israel cooperation, developments taking place in the Middle East and South Caucasus regions as well as other issues of mutual interest,” read a ministry statement. It gave no details of those discussions.
Although the statement described the talks as “regular,” they are understood to be connected with Kirakossian’s July 25 phone conversation with Israel’s Deputy Foreign Ministry Danny Ayalon.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry said that Ayalon “thanked Kirakossian for the friendly relationship and mentioned the historical ties and cultural similarities between the two nations.”
“Ayalon emphasized the importance Israel attaches to the continuous development of diplomatic relations and practical cooperation with Armenia,” the ministry said in a statement. “He further stated that it would be his pleasure to visit Yerevan, and invited Kirakossian to visit Israel.”
