Operational phase of Visa Liberalisation Dialogue launched at Senior Officials’ Meeting in Yerevan

Today in Yerevan, Deputy Director-General for Migration and Home Affairs of the European Commission, Johannes Luchner, and the Minister of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, Arpine Sargsyan, launched the operational phase of the Visa Liberalisation Dialogue during a Senior Officials’ Meeting.

The Senior Officials, overseeing the visa dialogue process, held the first exchange on the reforms needed in key areas crucial for achieving visa-free travel to the EU. These areas include document security, border and migration management, mobility and asylum policies, combating corruption and organised crime, and upholding fundamental rights. The meeting also explored how the EU could further support these reforms.

Both sides reiterated that the process is substance-based, that there is no automatism nor deadline to conclude it. The senior officials agreed that the next steps in visa liberalisation progress will consist in two scoping visits early 2025, to enable experts from the EU institutions and Member States to conduct a gap analysis. The results of the planned scoping missions will help establish the list of relevant conditions necessary to achieve the long-term objective of visa-free travel for Armenian citizens to the EU.