Pashinyan: Peace with Azerbaijan allows Armenia to expand cooperation  with  EU

ArmInfo.The recently concluded peace with Azerbaijan creates an opportunity for Armenia to expand cooperation with the European Union, including in  infrastructure projects. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan made this statement at a joint press conference with European Parliament  President Roberta Metsola in Strasbourg, touching on expanding military cooperation between Armenia and the European Union.

He noted that Armenia is already cooperating with EU countries in  this area. "We have defense cooperation with France, and we have  already received support from the European Union twice through the  European Peace Facility.  Overall, we cooperate with the EU in a  regional context, and the recently concluded peace with Azerbaijan  creates an opportunity for us to expand cooperation with the EU,  including in infrastructure projects," Pashinyan said.

As the Prime Minister pointed out, In Armenia, there is much talk  about security guarantees. "It is now clear to me that the only  guarantee of security is peace. There is no more reliable guarantee  of security than peace," he noted.

The second most important guarantee of security is cooperation,  including economic cooperation, connectivity, and mutual benefit, he  continued. "Of course, we  have military-technical cooperation with  the United States and several European countries, which we never had  before. However, understanding that the development of  the military  crucial, and that it is not only the right but also the  responsibility of every sovereign country, our perception of security  is changing over time, becoming more political and diplomatic rather  than military," Pashinyan emphasized. "The army is not a security  tool for us, but a reserve, in case suddenly, under any  circumstances, the main instruments of peace that I mentioned don't  work," the Prime Minister of Armenia said.