Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has arrived in Rome after Milan. His first meeting in the Italian capital was with president Maria Elisabetta Casellati of the Italian Senate.
The President of the Italian Senate welcomed the visit of the Armenian Prime Minister to Italy, which will give new impetus to bilateral relations. She noted that Italy is following the reforms in Armenia with interest and is ready to assist the country in the success of those reforms and exchange of experience. According to Casellati, this will promote the continuation of the dialogue between Armenia and Italy both bilaterally and within the European Union. She noted that the Italian Senate has ratified the Armenia-EU Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and the document is brought to the attention of the Italian Chamber of Deputies. The President of the Italian Senate also spoke with satisfaction about the dynamics of Armenia-Italy trade and economic relations and noted that Italy is interested in developing cooperation with Armenia in trade, infrastructure, and culture.
The Prime Minister, in turn, noted the high level of Armenia-Italy political dialogue, which leads to the development of economic relations. Nikol Pashinyan noted that there was a rather high growth in bilateral trade this year and expressed hope that as a result of his visit, this process would become more active. According to Prime Minister Pashinyan, Armenia is in the midst of serious changes. The head of government noted that on the agenda of these reforms, the EU is Armenia's main partner and thanked the Italian Senate for ratifying the Armenia-EU CEPA and submitting it to the Italian Chamber of Deputies. Nikol Pashinyan underscored that Armenia has a special attitude towards the Italian Chamber of Deputies for accepting, on April 10, the initiative on the Armenian Genocide recognition.
The Armenian Prime Minister also touched upon the issue of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement and noted that Armenia sees the solution of the issue exclusively through peaceful means. The President of the Italian Senate, for her part, noted that Italy welcomes the settlement of the conflict through dialogue and efforts aimed at peace.
