Аrmenian PM points to EU visa delays amid travel surge

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, addressing relations with the European Union during a press conference, stated that Armenia has drawn its European partners’ attention to long wait times at EU member states’ embassies.

“People wait for months. A queue might be scheduled six or seven months out, which is a serious issue. This is also linked to a significant rise in travel to the EU. If I’m not mistaken, compared to 2019, travel from Armenia to the EU has increased by 300 or even 400 percent in 2024. Naturally, this is also a result of expanded opportunities in the aviation sector,” he noted.

Pashinyan added that the visa liberalization process is progressing successfully but emphasized that it remains labor-intensive.

Regarding prospects of EU membership, he stated that all EU member states must first agree, and Armenia must meet EU criteria.

“In any case, we have an ambitious reform agenda and strategy, which we will implement regardless. Through the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement and a forthcoming new cooperation agenda between Armenia and the EU, we will continue reforms until Armenia fully meets European standards. At that point, two outcomes are possible: either Armenia is accepted as an EU member, or it is not. If Armenia is accepted, that’s excellent; if, for some reason, it is not, Armenia will still be a country aligned with modern European standards. In both cases, there is no reason to abandon this strategy,” he concluded.