Minister of Justice and EU counterpart discuss priorities for future co-operation

Minister of Justice of the Republic of Armenia Davit Harutyunyan today received the delegation led by Director “Neighbourhood East” in the Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations of the European Commission Lawrence Meredith.

The Minister expressed gratitude to the European counterparts for the close
co-operation and the projects jointly implemented with the Ministry of Justice and expressed willingness for continuity of the partnership.

Presenting the reforms implemented in the justice sector, Davit Harutyunyan emphasised the following steps taken in the fight against corruption: criminalisation of illicit enrichment, improvement of the declaration process, limitation of cash circulation, expansion of the scope of persons issuing declarations, introduction of whistle-blowing institutions, as well as creation of an Anti-Corruption Body. During the meeting, the Minister also touched upon the reforms in the judicial-legal sector, the Strategy on Human Rights Protection, the development of the system of electronic government and the activities for the drafting of constitutional laws.

Lawrence Meredith attached importance to the projects implemented in
the anti-corruption and judicial-legal sectors and expressed the interest and support of the EU in and to the reforms being implemented.

At the end of the meeting, the parties discussed the priorities for further co-operation.

Deputy Ministers of Justice Artur Hovhannisyan, Suren Krmoyan and Vigen Kocharyan; Head of Unit (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus and Eastern Partnership) of the Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement of the European Commission Vassilis Maragos; Head of the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Armenia, Ambassador Piotr Switalski and others also took part in the meeting.