Fourth Meeting of the EU-Republic of Armenia Joint Research and Innovation Committee under Horizon Europe

The fourth meeting of the EU-Armenia Joint Research and Innovation (R&I) Committee under the agreement associating Armenia to Horizon Europe took place in Yerevan, Armenia, on 23 October 2025. The meeting was co-chaired by Artur Martirosyan, Deputy Minister for Education, Science, Culture and Sports of the Republic of Armenia, and Carole Mancel-Blanchard, Head of the "International Cooperation - Europe and Americas" Unit, Directorate-General for R&I of the European Commission.

In her opening remarks, the EU Co-Chair referred to recent policy developments on the EU side and elaborated on the new EU-Armenia Partnership Agenda and how it will bring a further positive momentum to the EU-Armenia R&I cooperation, praised the ongoing reform process in Armenia aiming to strengthen the R&I capacity of the Armenia ecosystem, and highlighted the positive trend of participation of Armenia in Horizon Europe when it comes to EU budget contribution to Armenian entities of €8.11 M, compared to a total of €7.00 in 2024 and € 4.2M in Horizon 2020.

His Excellency, Ambassador Vassilis Maragos, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Head of the Delegation of the European Union to Armenia drew attention to the Armenia's vibrant startup ecosystem, reinforced by the EU €270 million Resilience and Growth Plan for Armenia for 2024-2027. He referred to initiatives in the field of digital innovation supported by the EU Delegation in recent years and highlighted the importance of further deepening their synergies with Horizon Europe.

The next Framework Programme for Research and Innovation

The EU Co-Chair outlined the next Framework Programme for Research and Innovation, FP10, which will also be called Horizon Europe. She explained that the draft Horizon Europe Regulation was adopted by the European Commission on 16 July 2025 as part of the Multiannual Financial Framework 2028-2034 package.

She stressed that FP10 is proposed as a strong, standalone programme and a strategic tool aligned with the EU's priorities for the coming decade - boosting innovation and strengthening Europe's competitiveness - with a proposed budget of €175 billion, which, if adopted, would nearly double the current programme's budget.

Armenia's R&I ecosystem

The Armenian co-chair acknowledged the political will on both sides to deepen R&I cooperation. Deputy Minister Martirosyan presented recent developments in the Republic of Armenia, namely the recently adopted Law on Higher Education and Science, the re-organisation of the Science Committee, and the Academic City project, aiming to be a hub for educational and technological progress in Armenia and in the region.

Armenia reported on engagement within the European Research Area (ERA), emphasising on efforts Armenia has invested to implement the ERA actions on better research assessments, infrastructure investments, and attracting young talent. Five newly launched national research programmes encourage participation from EU-based researchers, aligning strategically with the ERA objectives and enhancing Armenia's research landscape.

Armenia's participation in Horizon Europe

The two sides took the opportunity to discuss the implementation of the Horizon Europe Association Agreement, including measures to enhance the participation and success rate of Armenian entities through a more effective use of funding opportunities available under Horizon Europe, such as Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA), European Research Council (ERC), European Innovation Council (EIC), and all thematic clusters of Pillar II. They also reviewed the next steps concerning the implementation of the reciprocity principle.

Next steps

The discussions further addressed opportunities for strengthening collaboration within the Eastern Partnership Informal Working Group on Research and Innovation, as well as progress in implementing the recommendations of the Horizon 2020 Policy Support Facility report.

The meeting concluded with both sides reaffirming their shared commitment to deepening cooperation in research and innovation. The Armenian Co-Chair thanked the EU delegation for the constructive and forward-looking dialogue and expressed anticipation for the fifth meeting, scheduled to take place next year in Brussels. Both parties acknowledged the positive developments within the EU-Armenia R&I cooperation, while underlining the need to further reinforce national and EU efforts to achieve new success stories in the remaining two years from the implementation Horizon Europe.

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International cooperation with Armenia

RA MoESCS | Higher Education and Science Committee : Higher Education and Science Committee Hosted the 4th Meeting of the EU-Armenia Joint Committee on Research and Innovation under Horizon Europe