YEREVAN. – Armenian FM Edward Nalbandian held a number of bilateral meetings during his trip to Strasbourg on the occasion of assuming presidency in the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe.

First, Minister Nalbandian met with previous chairman of the Committee of Ministers, Andorra’s Foreign Minister Gilbert Saboya Sunyé. He congratulated his Andorran counterpart on successful presidency in the CoE, noting that a considerable work on implementation of Andorra’s priorities has been carried out within the recent six months.

Gilbert Saboya Sunyé expressed gratitude for supporting the initiatives carried out under chairmanship of his country and assured that the Armenian side will be provided necessary assistance from Andorra.

Armenian FM met with the President of PACE Jean-Claude Mignon who congratulated Nalbandian on assuming presidency in the Committee of Ministers. PACE head called it a historic day for Armenia, expressing hope that the Armenian side and PACE will cooperate effectively.

Edward Nalbandian met with his Norwegian counterpart Espen Barth Eide. The officials noted development of bilateral relations and agreed to continue the efforts in this regard. Nalbandian spoke about the efforts of Armenia and international community on peaceful settlement of Karabakh conflict.

Armenian Minister also met with his Dutch counterpart Frans Timmermans. The sides noted the importance of opening of the Armenian Embassy in The Hague two years ago, which was the impetus for the development of relations.

In Strasbourg, Edward Nalbandian met with Permanent Secretary of Cyprus MFA Andreas Mavroyiannis. Cypriot official expressed confidence that Armenia will make a significant contribution to increasing the role of the pan-European organization dealing with the protection of democracy, human rights and the rule of law.