The meeting of Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan and President of Russia Vladimir Putin kicked off.

Vladimir Putin congratulated Nikol Pashinyan on his election as Armenia’s Prime Minister and noted that “Armenia is Russia’s closest ally and partner in the region.”

“This relates to both economic collaboration and security issues,” Russian President said.

Touching upon economic ties, Vladimir Putin remarked that the trade turnover between the two countries is constantly increasing.

“This is an optimistic dynamics, and I am hopeful that we will not only keep this pace, but also multiply it. I wish you good luck as the leader of the Armenian government. I also hope that our relations will develop with the same success,” Russian President said.

Nikol Pashinyan noted that the Armenian government and people highly appreciated Russia’s balanced stance during the domestic political crisis in Armenia.

“There are certain points in Armenia-Russia relations that need to be discussed and others that are unquestionable. In particular, Armenian-Russian strategic allied cooperation does not need discussion. No one in Armenia has never and will never cast doubt on Armenian-Russian brotherly relations. We are committed to giving new impetus to our relations not only in political but also trade and economic sectors,” Armenian PM said.