On February 16, Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan had a meeting with Bjørn Berge, the Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe (CoE), the MFA press office reported. During the meeting, the sides discussed issues on cooperation between Armenia and the CoE and regional security and stability issues.

The meeting was followed by the launch of the conference of the CoE Action Plan for Armenia 2023-2026. The event's objective was to present the main priorities for the next four years outlined by the new Action Plan for Armenia.

In his opening remarks, Armenian FM Ararat Mirzoyan reiterated the strong commitment of Armenian authorities to the principles and values of the CoE enshrined in the Action Plan. He outlined that despite the hostile actions against Armenia and its democracy, and the current harsh challenges, the Armenian government remains faithful to the values and will continue strengthening democratic institutions. 

“We live in a region full of many security threats. For more than two months, the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh continues as a result of Azerbaijan's blockade of the Lachin corridor,” Armenian FM said. 

Mirzoyan added that Azerbaijan continues to hold Armenian prisoners of war and civilians hostage, and “the fate of many Armenian missing persons and those forcibly gone missing remains unknown.”

“As a result of the aggression undertaken in May and November 2021, as well as in September 2022, the sovereign territories of Armenia came under Azerbaijani occupation, and the risk of a new escalation by Azerbaijan still remains high,” he concluded.