April 7, 2021 - 18:29 AMT
Pashinyan, Putin to weigh in on new nuclear plant in Armenia, POW return

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Russian President Vladimir Putin are meeting in Moscow to discuss a slew of issues, including the repatriation of Nagorno-Karabakh prisoners of war, the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Armenia, as well as the delivery of Sputnik V vaccines against the coronavirus, RIA Novosti reports.

Meeting Putin in Moscow on Wednesday, April 7, Pashinyan said the issue of prisoners of war and other detained persons after hostilities with Azerbaijan has not been resolved yet.

"As we have repeatedly discussed, according to the November 9 (2020) statement, all hostages, prisoners of war and other detainees must be returned to their homeland. But, unfortunately, we still have people being held in Azerbaijan," Pashinyan said.

"I am glad we have no disagreements regarding the solution of this issue."

Pashinyan also told Putin that he intends to discuss with him the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Armenia. Pashinyan's comments came on the heels of the words of the director of the Metsamor nuclear plant, who said Armenia wants to extend the operating life of its NPP for additional 10 years until 2036.

The Armenian PM next weighed in on the delivery of Russia's Sputnik V vaccines to Armenia, revealing that the first batch of the shots will reach the country on Thursday.

"And we look forward to purchasing a large amount of the Russian vaccine, because it has proven its effectiveness in practice," Pashinyan added.