YEREVAN. Nov 8 (Interfax) - The 3+3 regional cooperation format should not replicate the existent platforms where regional issues are being discussed, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said.
"The agenda of the possible 3+3 format should not include the items that are already being discussed in other formats in a coordinated manner, such as de-blocking of regional transport communications or a settlement of the Karabakh conflict," Pashinyan said in an interview with Public Television Company of Armenia on Sunday.
Should the possible new format offer a new agenda, for instance, consideration of regional economic transit options, Armenia may be interested in that, Pashinyan said. "Armenia is interested in opportunities of regional cooperation. This is about nuances," he said.
Armenian Security Council Secretary Armen Grigoryan said earlier that Armenia was discussing the agenda of possible regional cooperation in the 3+3 format with Russia.
"Armenia is discussing the format exclusively with Russia. You know that Russia is actively discussing the agenda of the 3+3 format. Armenia has presented its approach and, if we see that our approach is understood and the items are clearly defined and acceptable, we will start to discuss possible prospects of this format," Grigoryan said in an interview with the Armenian news website Factor.
According to Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova, Moscow supports the call of the presidents of Azerbaijan and Turkey for setting up a regional consultative mechanism, i.e., the 3+3 format.
"These are South Caucasus countries and their neighbors: Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia, as well as Russia, Turkey, and Iran," Zakharova said.