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Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Saturday received Russia's Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu and the delegation headed by him, the PM's office reported.

Welcoming the Russian defense minister, Prime Minister Pashinyan said: “Dear Sergey Kuzhugetovich, I welcome you to Armenia. This is a very important visit. I would like to note that all the way through the war we felt the support provided by the Russian Federation, by President Vladimir Putin, by the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation and your personal support. Thank you for this. We experienced hard times before the war, but now we are facing a more difficult period, and we hope that we will be able to deepen the ongoing cooperation with the Russian Federation, including in the field of security and military-technical cooperation. Now, the military-political situation is different in the region. It has changed, and we need to explore all the parameters of this situation. I am confident that our strategic alliance, friendship and brotherhood between Armenia and Russia will be enhanced in the near and strategic future. Thank you.”

Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu said: “Dear Nikol Vovayevich, thank you for taking the time to receive us. We arrived with very specific tasks. You know that after the signed statement, we urgently moved the entire peacekeeping contingent here and completed this work the day before yesterday. We have stationed peacekeepers almost all over the territory of Karabakh; 23 observation posts have been set up; we now control the road leading to Stepanakert, the Lachin corridor; we ensure the safe movement and return of refugees.

There is still much to be done ahead in terms of providing for peaceful life in Karabakh. Our primary task is to prevent bloodshed. This is the task that our Supreme Commander-in-Chief has set before us, and we are certainly determined to fulfill it. In addition, we intend to discuss what our peacekeepers should do next, and of course, to discuss issues related to cooperation in the military and military-technical fields. We came with a comprehensive plan, and we hope to implement it. Thank you.”

A wide range of issues related to the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, military and military-technical cooperation between Armenia and Russia were discussed during the meeting.