YEREVAN.- Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan received on Wednesday the delegation led by the President of the National Council of the Swiss Confederation Dominique de Buman, comprised of the Vice Presidents of the National Council and representatives of all the parliamentary factions, the press service of the Armenian President’s Office reported.

Greeting the guests the President of the Republic noted that the visit of such a representational delegation from friendly Switzerland to Armenia once again shows the high level of political relations between the two countries and the mutual sympathy of the two peoples. President Sargsyan talked with satisfaction about the consistently developing inter-state relations and expressed confidence that the visit of the delegation with its saturated agenda will undoubtedly have a positive impact on the strengthening of Armenian-Swiss cooperation.  

Serzh Sargsyan congratulated Dominique de Buman on the occasion of being elected President of the National Council of Switzerland at the end of last year and wished him productive work. The President thanked Dominique de Buman for his devotion and consistent works aimed at the strengthening of Armenian-Swiss relations. Emphasizing that Switzerland has always been a reliable partner for Armenia, President Sargsyan thanked friendly Switzerland for supporting and standing with the Armenian people during difficult periods for Armenia.

The President of Armenia and the President of the National Council of Switzerland highlighted the role of inter-parliamentary cooperation for the development of interstate relations. In this context Serzh Sargsyan assessed it symbolic that by an interesting coincidence that former heads of parliamentary friendship groups of Armenia and Switzerland now head the legislative bodies of Armenia and Switzerland, which doubles the obligation to deepen parliamentary relations between the two states.

The interlocutors assessed the International Organisation of la Francophonie, the Presidency of which has been taken over by Armenia, as another good platform for making Armenian-Swiss ties closer, and hoped that the Francophonie summit to be held in Yerevan in October will be held at a high level.

Serzh Sargsyan and Dominique de Buman highlighted the close cooperation between the parliaments of the two countries in international organizations. President Sargsyan particularly highlighted the visit of the parliamentary friendship group of Switzerland led by Dominique de Buman to Artsakh in 2012, noting that such visits allow to get acquainted with the situation on site and personally.

During the meeting President Serzh Sargsyan and Dominique de Buman exchanged ideas over Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement process. The President of Armenia thanked the Swiss Confederation for its balanced position on the issue and the support to the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs, as well as its readiness and efforts aimed at contributing to the solution of the issue.