Russia was and remains a friend of Armenia - Armenian ambassador

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YEREVAN, November 6. /ARKA/. Russia was and remains a friend of Armenia and the Armenian people, Armenian ambassador to the Russian Federation Gurgen Arsenyan said a ceremony of presenting his credentials to Russian president Vladimir Putin on Tuesday./pp

The Armenian people and the Azerbaijani people are friends of Russia, the Russian people. And Russian President Vladimir Putin once again made it clear to both Armenian citizens and citizens of Azerbaijan that Russia was, is and remains a friend, he noted, according to Russian state-run news agency TASS./pp

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday at the ceremony of credential presentation that Moscow was doing everything to help Armenia and Azerbaijan normalize their relations and sign a peace treaty./pp

He noted that he was glad to see the newly-appointed ambassadors of Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia and Azerbaijan, saying they were the states which are Russia's closest neighbors, the best friends, natural strategic partners and allies./pp

However, in an interview with Russia's RIA Novosti news agency, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei warned of serious security threats if Azerbaijan and Armenia sign a ‘hasty peace’ treaty./pp ‘A hasty peace without comprehensive consideration of the positions of Baku and Yerevan, as well as the realities on the ground will lead to nothing good. On the contrary, it will create additional risks of tension and potential escalation of the conflict,’ Lavrov was quoted as saying./pp ‘We believe it is important to consolidate the peace process in a regional paradigm, among allies - South Caucasus countries and neighbouring partner states, to exclude destructive interference from outside. The aspiration of Washington and Brussels to oust Russia from the Armenian-Azerbaijani normalisation process only increases security threats in the region,’ Lavrov said.-0-/p