ArmInfo. The year 2018 special for Armenia is the year of radical democratic changes, manifested in the form of the "velvet revolution". On October 15, during his speech at the meeting of foreign ministers of the Eastern Partnership countries, Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan said.
The Armenian Minister recalled that Armenian society resolutely rejected the negative phenomena of the past and embarked on reforms aimed at combating corruption, strengthening the justice system and the rule of law, protecting human rights and fundamental freedoms, and ensuring equal opportunities in social and economic life in order to promote sustainable development.
According to him, in the form of "velvet revolution" has demonstrated a high level of legal awareness and maturity of the Armenian society and its institutions. He noted the important role of women and youth in the life of the country. "Peaceful democratic processes within the framework of the Eastern Partnership open up new areas for cooperation.
The main priorities of the new government of Armenia are the goals indicated in the program "20 goals until 2020", in particular, such areas as economic development and market opportunities, institutional strengthening and effective management, interconnection, energy saving, mobility, encouraging contacts between nations, protecting the environment Wednesday, "said the Armenian minister.
Mnatsakanyan assured that over the past 5 months, the Armenian government paid special attention to such issues as the rule of law, the fight against corruption and the promotion of democratic institutions and there are already tangible results. The Minister stressed that it is equally important to promote our national development program.
At the same time, he stated that the September elections to the Metropolitan Council of Elders demonstrated the continued public support and mandate given to the government and the Prime Minister. "The popular demand for holding early elections reflects the current political reality in Armenia - elections are expected to be held in December. The capital elections demonstrated the commitment and political will of the new authorities to hold free and fair elections," Mnatsakanyan said, adding that the RA government welcomes and appreciates the financial and technical EU support in the conduct of elections.
At the same time, he stressed that the government is decisive in stimulating the reform agenda for development. According to him, the modernization of the Armenian economy, with particular emphasis on the development of information and telecommunication technologies, increasing the number of startups, supporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs), encouraging innovative and creative education reflects the development agenda and direction.
According to him, creating favorable conditions for innovation, creative thinking, the use of technology, youth development and entrepreneurship are among the strategic priorities of the government. "In this regard, we seek to promote cooperation between the various platforms of the EU and the Eastern Partnership. A comprehensive and expanded Armenia-EU partnership agreement is indeed an important format for multilateral cooperation with the European Union in support of our national development agenda," the Armenian Foreign Minister said.
He also touched upon the issue of liberalizing the visa regime as one of the priorities of the new government, and which Armenia is actively promoting in the EU countries.
In conclusion, Mnatsakanyan noted that the "velvet revolution" in Armenia was purely internal in nature, and assured that the new government is committed to continuing the foreign policy agenda in both bilateral and multilateral formats in order to promote regional and international peace, stability and complementary cooperation.