Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan was hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace. After the welcoming ceremony, the two leaders made statements to the media.

In his speech, Emmanuel Macron noted: “Ladies and gentlemen, I am pleased to host Acting Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan in Paris. Dear Nikol, we have worked hard together in recent years in support of your commitment to promoting democracy and fighting corruption. I have kept fond recollections of my stay in Yerevan and our discussions held during the Francophonie Summit. This working visit is taking place at a crucial for Armenia time.

Armenia is facing a serious security-related crisis today. In the wake of the November 9 ceasefire, which ended the hostilities in Karabakh, Mr. Pashinyan and I assessed the situation and concluded that even if the ceasefire is being maintained in general, there is still much to be done.

France is prepared to provide assistance for people. First of all, I mean the prisoners of war, including the release of all prisoners of war and captives. The preservation of historical and cultural heritage in Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding areas is also a very important issue. Both Christian and Muslim heritage must be preserved.

As a co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, alongside the United States and Russia, France is bound by duty to do its best to achieve a de-escalation and re-establishment of dialogue between the parties.

I would also like to refer to the border incidents between Armenia and Azerbaijan. As I have already stated, Mr. Pashinyan, all demarcation and delimitation work should be carried out exclusively through negotiations; in no case should force be used.

The Azerbaijani troops must leave Armenia’s sovereign territory. I call on the parties to return to the positions they stood at as of May 11. We will try to help establish a dialogue.

France will support Armenia in this difficult situation as it has always done, first of all in the humanitarian sphere. Our medical institutions have been cooperating with their Armenian partners. We have also provided exceptional support to the International Committee of the Red Cross, which is involved in the search for prisoners of war held in Azerbaijan, their families and the search for missing soldiers.

Mr. Pashinyan and I next talked about economic cooperation. We outlined the opportunities available in specific areas in a bid to help Armenia develop infrastructure and continue with our joint commitment in the field of climate change. This is why I am very pleased to host the Acting Prime Minister today.

Dear Nikol, we stand in solidarity with Armenia and we will continue to do so. France is determined to bring peace to the region in this difficult period. Thank you again and welcome to France.”