“Since I’ve been here, it’s clear that Armenia and Europe are coming closer together. Lots of initiatives are being put in place, and aid has been given to Armenia at European level. So it’s clear that we’re keeping a close eye on this rapprochement. For example, there’s the growth and resilience plan, which is financed by Europe, and there’s the aid given to Armenia as part of the European peace facility. All these initiatives will bring Armenia closer to Europe. There has been talk of visa liberalization, and a dialogue has now been launched. I think all this is building a special relationship between Armenia and Europe”, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Belgium to Armenia Eric De Muynck answers in reply to a question from Aravot.am”; Some political forces in Armenia have launched a signature collection for EU membership. How do you feel about the future of Armenia’s EU membership in the context of Georgia’s protracted experience?
The Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium in Armenia has been functioning for one year. The ambassador summarizes the development of relations between the two countries within a year: “When you open an embassy, there are already a huge number of administrative tasks to do: you have to hire staff, find premises, set up all the processes, you can imagine all the work involved in opening an embassy. And then there was all the work of making the embassy known to the Armenian public, so that the public knew that from now on there was a Belgian residence in Yerevan. So we worked on cultural activities: theatrical plays, we took part in film festivals and we also worked a lot on the economic aspects”.
From the beginning, the task was to develop economic relations. The ambassador elaborates on what was achieved as a result of one year work: “Yes, we have worked hard to bring Belgian companies to Armenia. First, you have to make Armenia known and I think that for many Belgian companies Armenia is not on their radar. So we need to make people aware that interesting things going on here in Armenia as well. I think the IT sector is one in Armenia that has a lot to offer in terms of potential partnerships. This afternoon, for example, we visited a laboratory where a Belgian cyclotron machine has been installed, and the idea is to pursue this partnership to develop, together with the Armenian research center and private sector players, skills in cancer detection and perhaps one day in the treatment of these diseases using artificial intelligence”.
Nelly GRIGORYAN
