NA Speaker: Armenia faces serious humanitarian and security issues

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenian National Assembly Speaker Alen Simonyan addressed the 19th plenary session of the Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly (MPA), highlighting Armenia's security and humanitarian challenges.

He stated that Armenia seeks to become a partner state of the Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly.

"The Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly is a unique platform as it addresses critical issues such as counterterrorism, confidence-building, peace support, conflict resolution, economic integration, and many other urgent global challenges.

Armenia shares deep civilizational ties with Mediterranean nations, shaped by centuries of historical connections. The Armenian diaspora has long served as a bridge for cultural exchange and strong regional relations.

Although Armenia is not a member of the Union for the Mediterranean, it cooperates with the organization on sustainable development and regional stability initiatives. Guided by economic, cultural, and geopolitical interests, we actively engage with countries in the region.

Armenia is a founding member of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC), whose activities often intersect with those of the Union for the Mediterranean. We advocate for closer collaboration between BSEC and its partners to achieve common goals.

Taking this opportunity, I would like to express Armenia’s interest in becoming a partner state of the Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly," Simonyan said.

The Speaker of Parliament emphasized that Armenia is an active participant in the Group of Landlocked Developing Countries.

"As a landlocked country with its eastern and western borders blocked for over three decades, Armenia is acutely aware of the importance of open borders and fully operational transport infrastructure. The elimination of political barriers to the free movement of people, goods, and services is essential for integration into global markets.

Geopolitical crises in the security sector, supply chain disruptions, rising food and fuel prices, and climate change significantly impact development prospects for our group of countries.

Today’s global and regional challenges are severe and cannot be underestimated. Armenia faces serious humanitarian and security issues, and the constant threat of force negatively affects the well-being of any society. It is clear to us that stability and progress can only be achieved through peace. For this reason, Armenia is actively working towards lasting and sustainable peace in the region.

As a cornerstone of our peace agenda, the Armenian government has introduced the 'Crossroads of Peace' initiative, aimed at strengthening economic, political, and cultural ties in the South Caucasus by developing and improving infrastructure. This project is not meant to compete with other regional logistics initiatives but rather to complement them.

The goal of the initiative is to create new connections among all regional countries based on the principle of comprehensive accessibility. This means that all infrastructure—highways, railways, pipelines, cables, and power lines—will operate under the sovereign jurisdiction of the countries through which they pass. Each state will ensure the security of the infrastructure within its territory and oversee the border and customs control of transport, cargo, and people. The entire infrastructure will be used for both international and domestic transit. Countries will utilize these routes based on reciprocity and equality, with border and customs controls streamlined through a collective agreement," Simonyan explained.

He added that a seamless transportation network will be established from the Persian or Arabian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman, and from the Mediterranean Sea to the Black Sea, as missing sections of railways and highways are restored and reopened.

"Armenia reaffirms its commitment to promoting regional peace and stability and is hopeful that ongoing negotiations with Turkey on border reopening will yield positive results. We aim to become a constructive participant in Mediterranean cooperation mechanisms and are ready to work with all partners to effectively address our nations’ needs and priorities for mutual prosperity," Simonyan concluded.