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President Serzh Sargsyan received the Minister of State for European Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of France Harlem Désir on April 25, reports the information and public relations department of the President’s administration.

Welcoming the guest and his delegation, the President of Armenia noted that he recalls with special warmth his meeting with Mr. Désir in October 2015 in the framework of the Ministerial Conference on Francophonie during which they discussed in detail the agenda of the Armenian-French relations, possibilities to develop the Armenia-EU partnership as well as spoke about the NK peace process.

The President noted with disappointment that Azerbaijan’s destructive stance and his predictions of the time regarding the possible consequences came true: at the beginning of April, during the aggression unleashed by Azerbaijan, servicemen of that country committed numerous crimes, targeting also civilian dwellings and peaceful population. The NK Defense Army not only held out but also gave a worthy counterblow to the enemy. Azerbaijan nevertheless continues its provocations, and the situation remains tense.

At the request of the French State Minister, the President of Armenia presented his views regarding the causes and motives of the situation established at the NK line of contact, as well as regarding his views on its possible resolution.

At the beginning of the meeting, the Minister of State for European Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of France Harlem Désir presented to Serzh Sargsyan warm regards and best wishes from the President of France François Hollande and reiterated the position of France, which is also a Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, on the resolution of the Nagorno Karabakh problem. He said that in his country they believe that there is no military resolution to this conflict, and France is interested in the resumption of negotiations for the benefit of a peaceful resolution of the problem.

The parties concurred that in this situation it is necessary to expeditiously establish mechanisms for the monitoring of the violations of the ceasefire regime and introduction of the confidence building measures to prevent aggressive interventions and to create a possibility for reaching at the table of negotiations mutually acceptable solutions.

According to Harlem Désir, presence in his delegation of the French Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group Pierre Andrieu proves once again that France spares no effort to find a speedy and peaceful solution to the problem.