ArmInfo.On April 5, President Serzh Sargsyan, who is on a working visit to the Italian Republic, met with the President of the Senate of Italy, Maria Elizabetta Casellati.
According to the press service of the President, Sargsyan congratulated her on his election to the high office of the Chairman of the Senate and expressed the hope that the inter-parliamentary ties that have long been on the agenda of friendly Armenian-Italian relations will continue to expand and strengthen due to the personal efforts of Kazelatti. Serzh Sargsyan stressed the important role of the legislative bodies in the development of interstate relations, the formation of an atmosphere of mutual trust and mutual understanding and noted that Armenia is interested in establishing the closest links between the parliaments of the two countries and developing relations also within the framework of interparliamentary assemblies, which, according to the President, will allow Armenia and Italy to give each other comprehensive support in important matters. During the meeting, President Serzh Sargsyan also expressed gratitude and highly appreciated the recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the Italian Parliament. Stressing that the basis of special Armenian-Italian relations is the close historical contacts of the two friendly nations and common Christian values.
President Sargsyan noted with satisfaction that the Armenian-Italian intergovernmental relations have developed over the past quarter-century in the spirit of partnership and mutual trust, and today the two countries have significant cooperation in the economic, defense, interparliamentary, decentralized and humanitarian spheres. Another important example of mutual respect and trust between Armenia and Italy, according to the President of the Republic, is the effective service of the Armenian military under the auspices of the Italian command in the UN peacekeeping forces in Lebanon.
The interlocutors touched upon the Armenia-European Union relations and cooperation, which is one of the most important directions of the Armenian-Italian cooperation agenda. President Sargsyan and Senate Speaker Casellati exchanged views on the negotiation process for a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno- Karabakh conflict.