Armenian PM Says He Expects Visa-free Regime With Eu By 2029

YEREVAN, July 2 (NNN-Sputnik/RIA Novosti) -- Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Thursday that he expects to liberalise the visa regime with the European Union by 2029, reported Sputnik/RIA Novosti.

"During the pre-election period, I stated that our goal over the next two years, as of 2029, is to achieve visa liberalisation [with the EU]," Pashinyan said during a briefing with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Yerevan.

A lot depends on the Armenian side and its willingness to implement reforms in this matter, the prime minister added.

"There will be more evaluation missions this autumn to assess the process and the progress that is on the remaining benchmarks. This is a merit based process [the visa free liberalisation agreement], so certain elements have to be fulfilled," von der Leyen told the briefing.

Armenia is on the right path, she added.

“Once all these necessary elements are fulfilled, we can move on to our proposal for visa-free travel. It is a matter of taking the necessary steps for reforms; we will help you with that, and if this is fulfilled, then you have passed the finish line,” von der Leyen said.

Armenia is the only partner country currently engaged in an active visa liberalisation dialogue with the European Union, and the April report highlighted the significant progress the country has made towards achieving this goal, von der Leyen added.

--NNN-SPUTNIK/RIA NOVOSTI