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Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan met with Chilean President Michelle Bachelet on July 11 during his official visit to the Republic of Chile, the Armenian president’s press service reports.

Prior to the meeting, S. Sargsyan laid a wreath at Statue of Chilean National Hero General Bernardo O’Higgins.

The presidents of Armenia and Chile discussed a wide range of issues related to strengthening of bilateral relations.

Noting with regret that Armenian-Chilean relations have developed at an undesirable rate since the declaration of Armenia’s independence, the interlocutors shared the opinion that nowadays even a geographic distance is not an obstacle anymore, especially as both peoples have built their development path on the basis of the same values. The Armenian president said his visit aims to fill that gap and start a new stage of relations for the development of bilateral ties.

The sides underlined the importance of the creation of a legal and contractual framework between Armenia and Chile.

The sides considered cooperation in a number of spheres, including agriculture – particularly wine-making, as having good prospects. In the context of expanding Armenian-Chilean cooperation, the presidents of Armenia and Chile attached importance to the encouragement and promotion of cooperation in education, science, culture, tourism and sports.

The Armenian president said the fact that Armenia and Chile have similar approaches and positions on most important universal issues is crucial from the viewpoint of strengthening the interstate links, and one striking demonstration is the official recognition of the Armenian Genocide by Chile in 2007.

The interlocutors underscored the modest but special role of the small Armenian community of Chile in the promotion of friendly relations.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the foreign ministers of the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation between Foreign Ministries of Armenia and Chile.