29 June 2018, Yerevan, Armenia — The 7th Russian—Armenian Interregional Forum opened with the Plenary Session on Digital Initiatives by Russia and Armenia for the Implementation of the EAEU Digital Agenda. Among the speakers were Suren Papikyan, Minister of Territorial Administration and Development of the Republic of Armenia; Vladimir Medinsky, Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation; Garik Sargsyan, Governor of the Ararat Marz of the Republic of Armenia; Viktor Ikonnikov, Deputy Governor of the Arkhangelsk Oblast; as well as the heads of Synopsys Armenia and RT-Invest Transport Systems.
The Forum is organized by the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation in cooperation with the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Development of the Republic of Armenia, with the support of the Roscongress Foundation. The event was held at the Meridian Expo Centre and brought together over 400 participants from Russia and Armenia.
In his speech, Suren Papikyan noted: «Russia and Armenia face similar ambitious tasks: to provide comfortable conditions for their citizens, for conducting business, for launching new industries and for creating new jobs not only in the capital and large cities, but also in the regions. The digital agenda implemented by our states, which was coordinated within the EAEU, will allow not only to reduce the administrative burden and update the style of cooperation, but also significantly reduce the time it takes to implement the idea and eliminate expenses caused by geographical distance.»
Vladimir Medinsky emphasized that direct relations between regions occupy a special place, and that is where the principles of open market, free trade and equal relations are implemented.
«Russia is Armenia’s main foreign economic partner, its share in the foreign trade balance of the republic is almost 30%, and the trade turnover grows every year; in 2018 we saw a 36% increase compared to 2017. We have great prospects for cooperation in digital technologies, especially since Armenia has special potential in this sphere,» Vladimir Medinsky.
«Cooperation in education, science and culture plays an important role. Travel industry is developing. In 2017, the number of trips Russians took to Armenia increased by nearly 30%. Those contacts build good human relationship, and successful business is based on mutual trust,» Vladimir Medinsky added.
Garik Sargsyan noted that the recent government change in Armenia has raised the civilian legal consciousness to a new level. «Today we can safely say that we live in New Armenia, and we can hope that these positive changes will help bring the cooperation between the regions of Armenia and Russia to a new level,» Garik Sargsyan added.
Arkhangelsk Oblast was one of the first Russian regions that built a strong partnership with Armenia at interregional level, Viktor Ikonnikov emphasized: «We immediately confirmed our intentions with a specific plan of actions. We successfully develop economic, trade and humanitarian ties. Over the past six years, the trade turnover between the Arkhangelsk Oblast and Armenia nearly tripled and amounted to over 1.5 million dollars. This year we plan to open the Arkhangelsk trade house in Yerevan and the Armenian trade house in Arkhangelsk. We are working out the issue of arranging the tourist flow from the Arkhangelsk Oblast to Armenia on a systemic level, and a direct flight to this southern republic.»
During the Forum, bilateral documents were signed: Action Plan for the Programme of Interregional Cooperation between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Republic of Armenia for 2018–2021, and the Agreement on Cooperation between the Russian—Armenian University (RAU) and Group-IB (Russia) in Information Security.
In the course of the event, a number of negotiations were held, including the meeting of the Russian delegation with Nikol Pashinyan, Prime Minister of Armenia. A meeting of the joint work group on Russian—Armenian interregional cooperation of the Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Armenia also took place.
Five round tables were organized for the participants: ‘The Digital Agenda: A Regional Perspective’, ‘Yerevan—Moscow: Smart Cities, Smart Solutions’, ‘The Digitalization of the Agricultural Industry, Developing the Tourism Industry in the Emerging Digital Economy’, and ‘The Popularity of Social Networks and the Digital Space as a Factor Determining Youth Trends’. During the Forum, the Exchange of Contacts was held; it contributed to the expansion of business relations between Russian and Armenian entrepreneurs.
Forum photos and press materials are available at: https://goo.gl/Tk2r2C.
Contacts for press:
Nikolay Evdokimov: + 7 (903) 660 4314,
[email protected];
Kristina Semenova;
[email protected].
