SCO Secretary-General Vladimir Norov meets with Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan

On 26 September, SCO Secretary-General Vladimir Norov met with Armenian Minister of Foreign Affairs Zohrab Mnatsakanyan on the sidelines of the 74th Session of the UN General Assembly.

During the meeting they discussed the prospects for interaction between the SCO and Armenia as a dialogue partner.

Vladimir Norov noted that the SCO Development Strategy Towards 2025 provided for a gradual strengthening of the SCO's cooperation with its dialogue partners by building a mechanism for regular consultations. In this regard he pointed out the importance of implementing the roadmap for the development of interaction between the SCO and observer states and dialogue partners adopted by the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers in May 2019, which provides them with an opportunity for active participation in the events under the aegis of the SCO. The Secretary-General also underscored the ample opportunity for deepening partnership with Armenia within the context of Russia's current SCO presidency, the more so since Armenia applied for observer status.

The Armenian Foreign Minister affirmed the SCO's meaningful role in ensuring stability and security in the region. He emphasised the importance of expanding the SCO agenda by supplementing it with economic, cultural and humanitarian issues. In this regard, Mr Mnatsakanyan stressed that contacts with the SCO had a significant role to play concerning Armenian membership in the Eurasian Economic Union and implementation of joint projects in trade, transport logistics, energy, digitisation and tourism.