Upon Invitation of the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan paid working visit to India on November 02-04, 2017

04 November, 2017

The Armenian delegation headed by the President Sragsyan included Minister of Foreign Affairs Edward Nalbandian, Minister of Education and Science Levon Mkrtchyan and Minister of Economic Development and Investments Suren Karayan.

On November 03, President Serzh Sargsyan started his visit by attending the plenary session of the “World Food: India -2017” conference in New Delhi, and the ceremonious opening of an international food industry exhibition of the same name with about 2000 participants from over 20 countries. The President of the Republic of Armenia made a speech at the conference.

On the same day President Serzh Sargsyan met with Indian leadership and discussed the agenda of Armenian-Indian interstate relations and the developments prospects.

As part of his working visit to India, President Serzh Sargsyan met with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During the meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the later thanked Serzh Sargsyan for accepting his invitation and attending the Conference. He expressed the hope that President Sargsyan’s visit would give fresh impetus to Armenian-Indian relations and enhance them to a new qualitative level. The Prime Minister of India noted that Armenia is a reliable and important partner for India in the Eurasian area.

In his words, Armenian merchants were among the first to come to India and boost commercial ties between India and different countries.

Premier Modi congratulated President Sargsyan on successful completion of the constitutional reform in Armenia and the transition to the parliamentary system of governance, as well as on the victory of Serzh Sargsyan’s Republican Party in the parliamentary elections.

The President of Armenia said he had accepted the invitation with gratitude and was glad to be in a wonderful country like India. Serzh Sargsyan presented his impressions of the World Food Conference and the Exhibition that kicked off this morning. The President said he was delighted with the achievements of India, one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, especially in the field of food industry, and went on to assure that Armenia is strongly committed to deepening relations with India in all spheres - political, economic and humanitarian.

President Sargsyan availed himself of the opportunity to once again congratulate Prime Minister Modi and the friendly people of India on the 70th anniversary of India’s Independence. The Head of the Armenian State mentioned that as a friendly country, Armenia is pleased to witness India’s steadfast progress and its growing role and reputation in the international arena.

Reminding that Armenia and India have already crossed the 25-year threshold of establishing diplomatic relations, the parties concurred in that this jubilee is the best opportunity to sum up achievements and outline ways of expanding bilateral relations as all the necessary prerequisites are available.

The President said Armenia is ready to offer favorable conditions for Indian companies. In this context, Serzh Sargsyan called the Indian side’s attention to the free economic zone, being established in Meghri on the border with Iran, which can become an effective platform for cooperation. According to President Sargsyan, Armenia’s accession to the EAEU may facilitate friendly India’s access to the huge Eurasian market.

During the meeting, the sides touched upon the emerging opportunities for closer interaction and exchange of experience in a wide range of areas of mutual interest, such as jewelry, diamond processing, pharmaceuticals, film production information technologies, agriculture, food processing, tourism, education, science and culture.
President Serzh Sargsyan and Prime Minister Narendra Modi noted with satisfaction that the two countries are engaged in active cooperation in the multilateral format, which is best evidenced by the readiness for mutual assistance in international organizations.

Reference was made to the situation and the challenges faced in the South Caucasian region, including the negotiations over a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

On the same day, President Serzh Sargsyan met with President of the Republic of India Ram Nath Kovind in New Delhi.

Thankful for the high-level welcome shown to the Armenian delegation in India, President Sargsyan once again congratulated Ram Nath Kovind on his being elected as President of India, wishing him ever new achievements in his responsible mission aimed at ensuring India’s prosperity and the well-being of the people of India.

Touching upon the Armenian-Indian centuries-old friendship, Serzh Sargsyan pointed out that there are numerous references to close relations between the two nations in the works of historians. Many sources claim that Armenian and Indian merchants established strong ties of cooperation as early as in the first millennium. President Sargsyan said it was not accidental that a considerable number of Armenian communities had been formed in a number of major Indian cities since the 16th century, which used to play an active role in India’s social, political, economic and cultural life.

Evoking the Armenian community in Calcutta alone, Serzh Sargsyan noted that in the 17-19th centuries it was very viable and played a key social and political role not only in India, but also in the public life of all Armenians. In that context, President Sargsyan recalled the historic role played by the Armenian Community in Madras in lives of the Armenian people. President Serzh Sargsyan thanked the President and the people of India for their thoughtfulness of the Armenian cultural heritage in India.

In turn, the President of India congratulated his counterpart on steering Armenia successfully from the presidential form of government to the parliamentary form, as well as on the victory of Serzh Sargsyan’s Republic Party in the latest general elections, wishing them every success.

The interlocutors also touched upon regional issues and challenges, including the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement process. President Ram Nath Kovind reaffirmed his country’s position that conflicts should be settled peacefully through dialogue, and went on to underscore that India supports the mediation efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs.

President Sargsyan also met with Vice President of the Republic of India, Chairman of the Upper House of Parliament Venkaiah Naidu in New Delhi.

Thankful for the warm welcome shown to his delegation in India, the President of Armenia highlighted the role of active inter-parliamentary cooperation in the strengthening of the Armenian-Indian interstate relations.

Evoking his warm recollections of the meeting held earlier this year with former Vice President of India Mohammed Hamed Ansari and the effective discussion of issues related to Armenian-Indian relations, Serzh Sargsyan expressed the hope that either Vice President Naidu would avail himself of the opportunity to visit Armenia, where he would enjoy a cordial welcome in the capacity of Vice President of a country with serious traditions of parliamentary democracy in the Asian region. President Sargsyan noted that Venkaiah Naidu’s visit would have a great impact on the development of interstate ties, especially in terms of strengthening inter-parliamentary relations.

Welcoming the high-ranking guest and his delegation, India’s Vice President pointed out that strong with ancient history and rich ethnic cultures, the Indian and Armenian peoples have many similarities and affinities based on shared values.

The Armenian President advised that an Armenian-Indian parliamentary friendship group had already been established within the newly elected Armenian Parliament. In this regard, he stressed the need to organize both parliamentary groups and reciprocated high-level visits in a bid to boost the Armenian-Indian ties.

The first day of President Serzh Sargsyan’s working visit to India was concluded with a late meeting held with the representatives of the Armenian community.

The President addressed the meeting with greeting remarks, in which he touched upon the historical affinities and interactions between Armenia and India, the key role played by the Armenian community in strengthening our two peoples’ centuries-old friendship, Armenia-Diaspora relations, the challenges facing the Motherland and Armenians all over the world, the ways of dealing with them, as well as on the latest noteworthy developments in Armenia’s public life, including the country’s transition to full-fledged parliamentary governance following the referendum.

During the meeting, Serzh Sargsyan answered the questions of interest to community representatives, taking note of their success stories, problems and expectations from the Motherland. The Head of State was briefed on the Armenian community’s daily activities.

The President said he was pleased to see Dr. Daljeet Singh Chauhan, the President of Yerevan Medical University Alumni Association among the attendees. Serzh Sargsyan expressed conviction that the great number of Indian graduates and alumni of Armenian higher educational institutions is another bridge for friendship between the two nations that should be further strengthened and expanded.

President Sargsyan stated with satisfaction that Honorary Consul Shivkumar Ishwaran was making joint efforts with the Armenian Embassy in India and expressed the hope that their common initiatives would be fruitful.

President Serzh Sargsyan gave an interview to Doordarshan Public Broadcaster on the agenda and the development prospects of Armenian-Indian interstate relations, the potential for trade and economic partnership, Armenian-Indian historical and cultural affinities and a number of other issues.

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