The Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, has arrived in Iran, together with his wife, Anna Hakobyan, on Wednesday morning.

On the same day, the PM met with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. The sides signed two memoranda of understanding and made a statement for the media.

Iranian president Hassan Rouhani expressed readiness to increase the volumes of gas supplies and to conduct trilateral cooperation to export the Iranian gas to Georgia via Armenia. Rouhani also expressed Iran’s readiness to participate in the North-South Road Corridor project.

PM Pashinyan in turn underlined importance of a free trade agreement between the Eurasian Economic Union and Iran. Speaking about cooperation in energy sector, PM said it is important for the parties to agree on a gas price, and confirmed Armenia’s readiness to act as a transit.

The newly US appointed ambassador to Armenia, Lynne Tracy, is already in capital city Yerevan.

The photos of Tracy’s first day at work in this capacity have been posted on the Facebook page of the US Embassy in Yerevan.

“Ambassador Lynne Tracy started her work at U.S. Embassy Yerevan today!” reads the caption to these photos. “Welcome Madam Ambassador!”

The Armenian parliament speaker Ararat Mirzoyan delivered a speech in the Federation Council of Russia , the first speech in the history of the plenary session of the Federation Council.

Mirzoyan emphasized that Armenia considers Russia its strategic partner, and it is impossible to drive a wedge between the relations of the two countries.

He appreciated Russia’s role as a co-chairing country of the OSCE Minsk Group and reiterated Armenia’s commitment to a peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict.

“[But] literally yesterday, some of our Russian colleagues have become participants in a strongly expressed anti-Armenian action that was held in [Azerbaijan’s capital city of] Baku, and was aimed at the disruption of sustainable peace and stability in the region. Moreover, the Russian-Armenian Inter-Parliamentary Commission members’ participation in that event generates a justified bewilderment,” he said.

Armenian citizen Karen Ghazaryan who was captured by Azerbaijan last summer has been sentenced in Azerbaijan to twenty years in prison.

Karen Ghazaryan is charged with several articles of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan—especially of committing crimes against life and health, economic activity, and public safety.

Even though this young man has mental disorders, this does not prevent Azerbaijani authorities from portraying him as a “saboteur.”

Two Armenian nationals who are suspected of conspiracy to a murder of Turkey citizen were arrested in Istanbul.

Two men, together with 46-year-old Stella M. and her son Varlam M. – both nationals of Armenia – are behind a murder of 58-year-old Sedat Yongel, the Turkish media said. They allegedly killed Yongel to steal money and jewelry. Mother and son escaped to Armenia via Georgia, while the two men were arrested.