Secretary General of Council of Europe Marija Pejcinovic Buric meets Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Yerevan.

Council of Europe General Secretary Visits Armenia

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By Artak Khulian

YEREVAN (Azatutyun) — Marija Pejcinovic Buric, the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, pledged continued support of her organization to Armenia as she visited Yerevan on Monday, April 8.

In her post on X (formerly Twitter), Buric described her meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan as “excellent.”

“The Council of Europe will continue to support Armenia in its reform process,” she wrote.

According to Pashinyan’s office, during the meeting the Armenian prime minister, in particular, presented the principles of the Crossroads of Peace, a program of regional connectivity and dialogue with neighboring countries that is being promoted by official Yerevan.

Pashinyan also reportedly emphasized the role of the Council of Europe in addressing the problems of Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians and providing relevant international support.

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More than 100,000 Armenians were forcibly displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh after Azerbaijan carried out a one-day military offensive to establish full control of the region last September.

While in Yerevan, Pejcinovic Buric also met with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan.

Mirzoyan’s office said that cooperation between Armenia and the Council of Europe as well as issues of regional stability were discussed during the meeting.

It said the sides exchanged views on addressing “the mid-term and long-term needs” of Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians.

The Armenian minister and the visiting secretary general of the Council of Europe also reportedly touched upon steps aimed at establishing a sustainable and lasting peace in the South Caucasus.

While in Yerevan Pejcinovic Buric also met with Armenian Parliament Speaker Alen Simonian.

Late last year Pejcinovic Buric also visited Baku where she met with Azerbaijan’s president and foreign minister.

During her meeting with President Ilham Aliyev, the secretary general of the Council of Europe welcomed the ongoing dialogue between Baku and Yerevan regarding a peace treaty and the agreement reached between the two governments regarding the release of detainees.

As a result of the agreement announced by Azerbaijan and Armenia last December, Baku released 32 Armenian prisoners, while Yerevan handed over two detainees to Azerbaijan.

The visiting Council of Europe official today declined to comment on what the organization is doing in terms of getting the other Armenian detainees held in Baku released.

 

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