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ARMENIAN OPPOSITION PARTY CONCERNED ABOUT NEW DEAL WITH RUSSIA
Ruzanna Stepanian
Armenialiberty.org
Aug 24 2010
A major Armenian opposition party expressed concern on Tuesday over
Armenia's new military accord with Russia, saying that it has raised
serious questions relating to the country's national security.
Leaders of the Zharangutyun (Heritage) party questioned Armenian
officials' claims that the deal commits Russia to openly siding
with Armenia in the event of another war with Azerbaijan. They also
denounced Moscow's reported plans to sell sophisticated anti-aircraft
missiles to Azerbaijan.
"The mechanisms for how Artsakh (Karabakh) can be protected with this
agreement are totally unclear," said Ruben Hakobian, Zharangutyun's
deputy chairman. "Maybe there are mechanisms we don't know of yet.
Maybe the authorities know them but won't tells us for the moment."
"But as things stand now, the document signed by the [Russian and
Armenian] presidents does not answer this question," he told a news
conference, referring to amendments to a 1995 treaty regulating the
presence of a Russian military base in Armenia.
Under those amendments, the base will remain in Armenian territory
for 24 more years, until 2044, and play a more important role in the
country's security. According to top representatives of President
Serzh Sarkisian's Republican Party, this means the Russians would join
Armenia in fighting back a possible Azerbaijani attack on Azerbaijan.
Russian leaders have made no public statements to that effect,
however. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said last week that the new
agreement does not envisage a serious change in the mission of the
Russian troops stationed in Armenia.
Hakobian and Zharangutyun's parliamentary leader, Stepan Safarian,
also questioned the rationale for extending the lease on the Russian
base, which was due to expire in 2020, now. "This is not in Armenia's
interests," said Safarian. Hakobian, for his part, spoke of mutual
distrust between Moscow and Yerevan.
The Armenian National Congress (HAK), a larger and more influential
opposition force, likewise claimed on Monday that the Kremlin had
Russian military presence in Armenia extended because it does not
regard the Sarkisian administration as a "long-term and reliable
partner." Nonetheless, the HAK's reaction to the Russian-Armenian
deal was largely positive.
Like the HAK, the Zharangutyun leaders expressed serious concern at
reports about the planned sale of Russian S-300 air-defense systems
to Azerbaijan. They said Armenia should consider pulling out of the
Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) if the
deal goes through.
"If Russia really completes this sale to Azerbaijan, then it itself
will place Armenia out of the field of strategic partnership and the
CSTO," Safarian told journalists.
From: A. Papazian
Ruzanna Stepanian
Armenialiberty.org
Aug 24 2010
A major Armenian opposition party expressed concern on Tuesday over
Armenia's new military accord with Russia, saying that it has raised
serious questions relating to the country's national security.
Leaders of the Zharangutyun (Heritage) party questioned Armenian
officials' claims that the deal commits Russia to openly siding
with Armenia in the event of another war with Azerbaijan. They also
denounced Moscow's reported plans to sell sophisticated anti-aircraft
missiles to Azerbaijan.
"The mechanisms for how Artsakh (Karabakh) can be protected with this
agreement are totally unclear," said Ruben Hakobian, Zharangutyun's
deputy chairman. "Maybe there are mechanisms we don't know of yet.
Maybe the authorities know them but won't tells us for the moment."
"But as things stand now, the document signed by the [Russian and
Armenian] presidents does not answer this question," he told a news
conference, referring to amendments to a 1995 treaty regulating the
presence of a Russian military base in Armenia.
Under those amendments, the base will remain in Armenian territory
for 24 more years, until 2044, and play a more important role in the
country's security. According to top representatives of President
Serzh Sarkisian's Republican Party, this means the Russians would join
Armenia in fighting back a possible Azerbaijani attack on Azerbaijan.
Russian leaders have made no public statements to that effect,
however. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said last week that the new
agreement does not envisage a serious change in the mission of the
Russian troops stationed in Armenia.
Hakobian and Zharangutyun's parliamentary leader, Stepan Safarian,
also questioned the rationale for extending the lease on the Russian
base, which was due to expire in 2020, now. "This is not in Armenia's
interests," said Safarian. Hakobian, for his part, spoke of mutual
distrust between Moscow and Yerevan.
The Armenian National Congress (HAK), a larger and more influential
opposition force, likewise claimed on Monday that the Kremlin had
Russian military presence in Armenia extended because it does not
regard the Sarkisian administration as a "long-term and reliable
partner." Nonetheless, the HAK's reaction to the Russian-Armenian
deal was largely positive.
Like the HAK, the Zharangutyun leaders expressed serious concern at
reports about the planned sale of Russian S-300 air-defense systems
to Azerbaijan. They said Armenia should consider pulling out of the
Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) if the
deal goes through.
"If Russia really completes this sale to Azerbaijan, then it itself
will place Armenia out of the field of strategic partnership and the
CSTO," Safarian told journalists.
From: A. Papazian