On December 13, the RA NA President Alen Simonyan received the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Canada to Armenia Andrew Turner.
Congratulating the Ambassador on assuming the responsible office, Alen Simonyan expressed conviction that the opening of the Embassy of Canada to Armenia and the appointment of Andrew Turner as first resident Ambassador will be a new impetus in the development of the two countries’ relations.
Reference was made to the development of the inter-parliamentary dialogue and parliamentary diplomacy, in this context the role of the Friendship Groups functioning in the two parliaments. Alen Simonyan highlighted the considerable role of the Armenian community of Canada in strengthening of bilateral ties.
Touching upon the regional challenges, the RA NA President underscored: “We understand that the key system of our security is democracy. We are hopeful that the international partners will support democratic Armenia in establishing lasting peace in the region.” In this context the Head of the Parliament presented to the Ambassador the process of peace treaty signing with Azerbaijan, referred to the immediate return being held in Azerbaijan. According to Alen Simonyan, even after the implementation of the agreement for the exchange of the captives between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the Armenian captives will still remain in that country.
The Ambassador expressed his readiness for further cooperation, noted that Canada supports the territorial integrity, sovereignty and democracy of Armenia. According to him, the visit of the Foreign Minister of Canada to Armenia and the opening of the Embassy are considered to be as one more proof of supporting democracy.
