The meeting was held on the sidelines of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council meeting.
Excerpts from the transcript:
Mikhail Mishustin: Mr Pashinyan, colleagues.
I am glad to see you again.
Mikhail Mishustin’s conversation with Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan
Mikhail Mishustin with Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan
Mikhail Mishustin’s conversation with Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan
First of all, I would like to convey best wishes from Russian President Vladimir Putin to you. You talked to him over the telephone the other day and discussed the most important issues on our bilateral agenda.
In turn, I would like to ask you to pass along greetings to President of Armenia Vahagn Khachaturyan.
We sincerely value our alliance and partnership with Armenia. Our countries are bound by good, fraternal relations based on the historical friendship of the Russian and Armenian nations.
Our governments are working very hard to strengthen trade and economic cooperation. And, despite the difficult external situation, our cooperation is making great strides.
Russia is the leading foreign trade partner and now the main investor in the Armenian economy. I will give examples. Last year, from January to November, mutual trade increased by 77 percent compared with 2021. It exceeded $4.1 billion, which is record high for our mutual trade as of today.
The volume of accumulated Russian investment is about $2 billion. More than 40 leading Russian companies operate on the Armenian market and are among the largest taxpayers in Armenia.
We propose actively launching new joint projects. Mr Pashinyan, we have just discussed industrial cooperation in detail. The traditional areas of interest to us are the peaceful atom, energy, mining, transport, logistics and digital technology.
Practical issues are resolved at the level of the intergovernmental commission. From Russia, it is chaired by Alexei Overchuk.
A programme of economic cooperation is in effect until 2025. Our cooperation is also expanding via the Russian Export Centre. In 2022, we held 24 business missions to Armenia together with dozens of Russian regions.
Armenian entrepreneurs now have excellent opportunities to work on our market following the departure of unfriendly states. I do not only mean large businesses, but also small and medium-sized enterprises, which will contribute to growth in the number of jobs.
And, of course, we have traditionally focused on education. Around 5,000 Armenian students are studying at Russian universities. The Government of Russia has set aside 250 scholarships [for Armenian students] for the upcoming academic year.
Mr Pashinyan, we consistently stand for unblocking economic and transport links in the South Caucasus. We consider it important to ensure the implementation of the agreements reached by the leaders of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. The creation of new transport infrastructure routes is in the interests of all states in the region.
I am ready to discuss all topical issues on our bilateral agenda with you, Mr Pashinyan.
Nikol Pashinyan: Mr Mishustin, colleagues.
I am glad to see you all.
You have stressed that we have a new momentum in trade and economic relations, in mutual trade. It is true. We have very good, big growth. I have repeatedly said that there are, of course, some objective conditions, but I want to emphasise the special personal role of Vladimir Putin in this momentum, your personal role and the role of Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Alexei Overchuk.
As you know, unfortunately, we have logistical problems very often, and we are very grateful that you quickly respond every time and make decisions that contribute to the expeditious resolution of these problems.
