BEIRUT: Lebanese officials signed agreements with their Armenian counterparts in Yerevan Friday in an effort to bolster ties between the two countries.

Ministers from both countries signed cooperation agreements in the fields of education, environment, industry and tourism following a wide-ranging meeting between President Michel Sleiman and Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan at the Presidential Palace in the Armenian capital.

An official delegation of MPs and ministers headed by Sleiman began a three-day visit to Armenia Wednesday and is to return to Beirut this weekend.

“I held a lengthy discussion with President Serzh Sargsyan and we discussed the means to strengthen the relations between our countries and our people in different areas,” said Sleiman during a joint news conference with Sargsyan, who presented Sleiman with the country’s Medal of Honor.

“We also discussed the current regional and international developments,” Sleiman added.

Speaking at the conference, Sleiman reiterated Lebanon’s full support for stability in Armenia and the South Caucus region, which has seen sporadic military conflict among Armenian and Azeri troops in the past 17 years.

“I also reiterated to President Sargsyan that on the 20th anniversary of Armenia’s independence, Lebanon would continue to stand by Armenia and would support finding diplomatic solutions to conflicts that persist with some of its neighbors ... especially the ongoing conflict over Nagorno-Karabagh,” said Sleiman in reference to an enclave in Azerbaijan which has been occupied by Armenia since 1994.

Although internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijani territories, Nagorno-Karabagh is a de facto independent state and is now controlled by Nagorno-Karabagh Republic.

In a question and answer session with reporters, Sleiman said that the Lebanese government would stand in support of the people in Nagorno-Karabagh. “We hope that this conflict will be solved based on international law and based on the right of the people to self-determination,” Sleiman told reporters.

Earlier Friday Sleiman and the delegation, accompanied by Armenian Foreign Affairs Minister Edward Nalbanian, visited the Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial in Yerevan to honor the victims of 1915 Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Empire.