Prime Minister of Armenia and First Vice President of Iran discuss bilateral relations

At the invitation of Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan, First Vice President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Es'haq Jahangiri arrived in Armenia on a two-day official visit.

Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan met his Iranian counterpart at Zvartnots international airport. A little later, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia and the First Vice President of Iran had a private meeting in the House of Government, followed by the two delegations' enlarged meeting, after which Hovik Abrahamyan and Es'haq Jahangiri made a joint statement for mass media, ArmInfo's correspondent reported from the Government.

In the statement, the sides reaffirmed their commitment to boost the bilateral relations. The prime minister said they summed the results of the work carried out under the arrangements made during his last visit to Iran. A broad spectrum of issues connected with plans for future was discussed in the course of the meeting. Prime Minister Abrahamyan hailed the agreement on Iran's nuclear program saying it will help enhance the international ad regional security as well as the sustainable development of the region.  Issues connected with the expansion of the trade and economic relations in the field of energy, prospects of cooperation in the field of agriculture, as well as issues of cooperation in the humanitarian field. The sides discussed the construction of the Third High-Voltage Power Line expressing hope for its completion in 2018.

They discussed also the construction of the Meghri HPP and the implementation of the program of construction of power distributing networks in the settlements bordering with Iran. Hovik Abrahamyan reaffirmed his readiness to boost the economic relations and give a new impetus to the bilateral relationships.  The sides discussed also the construction of the road infrastructures, in particular, the investments projects under North-South Transport Corridor and Iran-Armenia Railway construction. Hovik Abrahamyan and Es'haq Jahangiri hailed the cooperation in the field of agriculture at both intergovernmental and inter-regional level. They made a point of the activity of the intergovernmental committee and mutual visits.  The prime minister said they discussed interaction of Iran and the Eurasian Economic Union. On behalf of the Government, Hovik Abrahamyan expressed readiness to contribute to the Customs Union-Iran dialogue and signing of a free trade agreement between the Customs Union countries and Iran.  
Es'haq Jahangiri, in turn, expressed confidence that the implementation of joint motor and railway communication projects will help linking the Persian Gulf and the Black Sea region.  Stressing that Armenia's EEU membership opens new opportunities for the two countries, Es'haq Jahangiri said that establishment of the free trade areas will create positive conditions for mutually advantageous cooperation between Armenia and Iran. The Iranian vice president hailed the resumption of the construction of the Third Power Line. For conclusion, Hovik Abrahamyan said that the negotiations were held in warm, constructive and friendly atmosphere, which is characteristic to the two friendly countries.