Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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72. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will report on his engagements with the government of Armenia; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4888/25]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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As of yet, I have not had any direct engagements with the government of Armenia in my role as Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade. I was grateful to receive a congratulations letter from the Armenian Foreign Minister on my recent appointment, and I look forward to engaging with him at an early opportunity.

The Department of Foreign Affairs has had ongoing engagement with Armenia since 1996, when our diplomatic relations were established. My officials are in regular contact with Armenian counterparts, through our Embassy in Sofia, and with the Embassy of Armenia in London, which is accredited to Ireland. Varuzhan Nersesyan was appointed Ambassador to the UK and Ireland in July 2021 and regularly travels to Ireland for meetings with Government officials and other interlocutors.

The then Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence, Micheál Martin, had a phone-call with Foreign Minister Mirzoyan on 11 August 2023 to discuss the situation in the region and express concern for the welfare of civilians in Nagorno-Karabakh. On 5 October 2023, then Taoiseach Leo Varadkar met with Prime Minister Pashinyan en marge of the European Political Community meeting in Grenada, where he expressed his concern at the plight of Karabakh-Armenians, and outlined support by Ireland and the EU for the humanitarian effort. On 14 May 2024, then Minister of State for EU Affairs, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill TD met with Ambassador Nersesyan in Dublin and discussed the peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan, as well as our bilateral relations.

I look forward to continuing to deepen our relationship with Armenia in my capacity as Minister for Foreign Affairs and welcome opportunities to engage with my Armenian counterpart in the future.