Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan hosted Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of the Holy See, Government Press office reports.
First, the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State had a private conversation, then the negotiations continued in an expanded format.
In his speech, Nikol Pashinyan noted, "Your Eminence, I am happy to welcome you to the Republic of Armenia. We highly appreciate your contribution to the development of relations between Armenia and the Vatican. We also highly appreciate today's visit and willingness to give a new boost to the relations between the Republic of Armenia and the Vatican. The Armenian people fondly remember the visits of Pope Francis and Pope John Paul II in 2001 and 2016, but I must also emphasize that this is the first visit of the Secretary of State of the Vatican to Armenia. And it is a great honor for me to receive you. This indicates a new charge in our relationship. You are welcome."
In his turn, Pietro Parolin noted, "Thank you Mr. Prime Minister, thank you for giving me this opportunity to meet, have a dialogue and exchange ideas with you. I am very happy to be in Armenia, precisely in the context of the friendly relations that already exist. This visit will deeinitely help to develop them further. Recently, a very positive change has taken place, that the Vatican has an Apostolic nuncio, the ambassador, in Armenia. We thank you for this attitude."
At the meeting, the interlocutors discussed issues related to both bilateral relations and regional processes. In particular, reference was made to the deepening crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh as a result of Azerbaijan's illegal blocking of the Lachin Corridor, the post-44-day war humanitarian issues, ongoing negotiations on the peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Pietro Parolin expressed the readiness of the Holy See to contribute to the establishment of peace and stability in the region, as well as the process of solving humanitarian problems.
