The EU and Armenia visa liberalisation issue was discussed today in a meeting held between the Minister of Justice of Armenia, Grigor Minasyan, and the Head of the EU delegation in Armenia, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Grigor Minasyan.
According to local media reports, both parties recorded the planned actions in this direction, Schengen.News reports.
In addition, the Minister also emphasised the high level of cooperation with the EU in terms of ensuring democratic reforms as well as the rule of law in Armenia.
Grigor Minasyan also referred to the deepening of Armenia’s cooperation with the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation (Eurojust), highlighting the importance of signing the “Working Agreement” project and ensuring the implementation of the Eurojust Agreement.
Visa Liberalisation Will Not Lead to Migration Rise
Recently, the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, said that the EU should not worry about a potential surge in irregular migration once the visa liberalisation agreement is reached.
Armenian PM ensured that the country has taken all the necessary measures in this regard, emphasising that there is no place for such concerns.
When people get the sense of, so to say, having big opportunities, then they have less desire to leave. Today, there are thousands of people in Europe and the US who are not returning to Armenia because they travelled there with difficulties, and if they return, they won’t be able to go back again.
According to him, the idea of movement permits people to explore places. However, it does not make them stay irregularly in a country after they are eligible to travel whenever they want.
Earlier this month, the European Union Ambassador to Armenia, Vassilis Maragos, expressed his confidence that the EU-Armenia visa liberalisation process could be reached through joint efforts.
However, he added that it is still too early to discuss the specifics of this process.
Maragos told Armenpress that a strong partnership had already been established between both parties in fields such as border management and judicial reforms, among others.
Other sectors that ensure safe travel and destinations are also important. However, with joint efforts, I believe we can achieve this significant goal for the benefit of the citizens of the Republic of Armenia.
The European Union and Armenia already launched a dialogue on visa liberalisation for Armenia at the political level.