On October 12, Armenian National Assembly speaker Hovik Abrahamyan launched his official visit to Greece.

While in Athens, he met with the President of Greece, Karolos Papoulias, who appreciated the level of Armenia-Greece friendly relations, noting historic similarities between the nations.

“Both Armenians and Greeks suffered at the hands of Turkey,” the President said, expressing regret over Turkey’s failure to apologize for the Armenian Genocide in Ottoman Empire.

President Papoulias emphasized the importance of parliamentary speaker’s visit in the development of bilateral relations, noting that January 2011 visit of the Armenian President to Greece with further stimulate intergovernmental cooperation.

Dwelling on Karabakh issue, the President stressed the importance of settling the conflict within OSCE MG framework.

Abrahamyan, in turn, pointed out that Yerevan views bilateral relations as an important aspect in the European integration of Armenia, parliamentary press service reported.