Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and European Council President Donald Tusk discussed a wide range of issues of mutual interest, Pashinyan told reporters on Wednesday.

The sides discussed a wide range of issues on relations between Armenia and the EU. An exchange of views took place on sectoral areas and the internal political life of the republic, regional processes.

The Prime Minister noted that he reaffirmed the policy of the country's authorities aimed at ensuring the rule of law and strengthening democracy, as well as the fight against corruption. The PM briefed the President of the European Commission about the efforts of the country's authorities in creating an independent judiciary and stressed the importance of promoting European structures and the EU in particular.

Nikol Pashinyan highlighted the importance of expanding relations with the EU countries and in this context expressed the need for early ratification of the Armenia-EU deal.

According to the Prime Minister, this is a tool that not only contributes to the development of Armenia’s relations with the EU, but also the implementation of the reform agenda in Armenia. The Prime Minister noted that the Armenian authorities, in cooperation with the relevant EU bodies, developed a roadmap for the implementation of the deal. The parties touched upon the issue of starting a dialogue on visa liberalization. Nikol Pashinyan noted the interest of Armenia in this issue, and asked Donald Tusk to convey to the EU member states a request to complete the ratification process of the deal as soon as possible.

The Prime Minister thanked the EU for its balanced position on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and unconditional support for the efforts of the co-chairs, and also expressed confidence in the EU’s firmness on this issue.