On the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan met with Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Economic and Social Policies of Singapore.
At the beginning of the meeting, the Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore expressed his appreciation of the valuable contribution that the Armenians made to the development of his country, highlighting the significance of Armenian cultural heritage in Singapore. Tharman Shanmugaratnam said Armenia could play an important role in the development of relations between ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and our region.
“It is very important that there is no problem whatsoever between us, and we are determined to deepen bilateral cooperation,” the Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore said.
In turn, Karen Karapetyan stressed that Singapore’s development path is a good example for us. He pointed out a number of areas that might be of interest to Singapore-based businesses – winemaking, organic agriculture, education, and information technology. The implementation of educational exchange programs was also highlighted.
“We are interested to promote negotiations between the Eurasian Economic Union and the Singapore Free Trade Zone. Such cooperation can contribute to the growth of trade and investment and help implement mutually beneficial programs,” the Prime Minister noted.
The parties stressed the need for avoiding double taxation between Armenia and Singapore. They expressed satisfaction with the fact that the relevant agreement is at the final stage of development.
In conclusion, Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan invited his Singaporean counterpart to visit Armenia. Tharman Shanmugaratnam accepted the invitation with pleasure.