Meeting between Mirzoyan and the Foreign Minister of Syria

On February 23, Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan met with Faisal Mekdad, the Foreign Minister of the Syrian Arab Republic, in Damascus, the Press Office of the Armenian Foreign Ministry reported. 

Ararat Mirzoyan expressed his condolences to his colleague and the friendly people of Syria in connection with the devastating earthquake of February 6, expressing the support of Armenia and the Armenian people. In this context, the Foreign Minister of Armenia noted that the rescue squads sent by the Government of Armenia were among the first in Syria, adding that three batches of humanitarian aid have already been sent from Armenia to the disaster-affected regions.

Foreign Ministers also discussed issues on Armenian-Syrian cooperation in bilateral and multilateral formats. The sides stated that the relations between the two countries are based on the centuries-old friendship between the Armenian and Syrian peoples. In this regard, it was emphasized that the Armenian community of Syria plays the role of a unique bridge between the two countries.

Regional security issues were also on the agenda of the meeting. Ararat Mirzoyan briefed Mekdad on the details of the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh resulting from Azerbaijan's blockade of the Lachin corridor.

Meeting between Mirzoyan and the President of Syria

On the same day, Bashar al-Assad, the President of the Syrian Arab Republic, received Ararat Mirzoyan.

The interlocutors discussed the situation in the disaster-affected regions of Syria and the works aimed at overcoming the existing problems. Issues of Armenian-Syrian bilateral relations were also on the agenda. Cooperation on international platforms was touched upon. Issues on regional and international security were also discussed.

"The Foreign Minister of Armenia briefed the President of Syria on the recent developments in the normalization process of Armenia-Azerbaijan relations, as well as the dire humanitarian situation resulting from the illegal blockade of the Lachin corridor by Azerbaijan," the report added.

Visit to Aleppo

On February 23, the Foreign Minister of Armenia visited Aleppo.

Ararat Mirzoyan visited the Shaar region affected by the earthquake, where the rescuers of Armenia carried out search and rescue operations in the days following the earthquake and got familiarised with the situation.

In Aleppo, Minister Mirzoyan also met with the "Armenian Center for Humanitarian Demining and Expertise" employees.