Aivazyan Highlights the Importance of Prisoner Return During Meeting with Lavrov

On February 17, Armenian Foreign Minister Ara Aivazyan met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during a working visit to Russia. The two officials emphasized the high level of allied cooperation between Armenia and Russia, both bilaterally and within international organizations, with a focus on regional security and integration frameworks.

The importance of conducting sectoral consultations between the political departments of the two countries and maintaining intensive dialogue at various levels was underscored.

The foreign ministers of Armenia and Russia also discussed issues concerning regional security and stability in detail. They exchanged views on the implementation of the provisions of the trilateral statements from November 9 and January 11 that followed.

In this context, and addressing the urgent humanitarian issues, Minister Aivazyan stressed the importance of repatriating prisoners of war and individuals held in captivity, noting that Azerbaijan's artificial delay in this issue presents serious obstacles to the implementation of the trilateral statements.

Minister Aivazyan appreciated the Russian side's efforts toward improving the humanitarian situation in Artsakh. The meeting's agenda also included questions related to the resumption of the peace process in Nagorno-Karabakh. Both sides emphasized the need to address key issues of resolution within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmanship.