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Putin-Sargsyan: Few details released about Moscow meeting believed to
have reviewed key geopolitical issues
News | 20.12.12 | 12:08
Photo: www.president.am
By Siranuysh Gevorgyan
ArmeniaNow reporter
The presidents of Armenia and Russia met in Moscow Wednesday evening
on the sidelines of a major gathering of several post-Soviet leaders
in the Russian capital.
Very few details of the meeting between Serzh Sargsyan and Vladimir
Putin have been released by their press offices in Yerevan and Moscow.
According to the Armenian presidential press service, the two leaders
discussed `Armenian-Russian strategic relations, including issues of
deepening cooperation in areas of mutual interest.'
The terse report, however, may actually be indicative of quite serious
issues being discussed at the meeting, like Armenia's possible
accession to the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, or a
nascent Eurasian Union (EAU), a Putin-advocated re-integration project
for former Soviet republics. Recently, officials in Armenia have been
talking more about developing closer ties with the European Union.
Many say EAU and EU are, in fact, mutually exclusive.
Before his meeting with Putin, Sargsyan took part in the summit of the
Collective Security Treaty Organization, a Russia-led defense pact
that besides Armenia also includes Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and
Tajikistan. The Armenian leader made a speech at the gathering,
addressing issues like the Karabakh settlement and the Syria crisis.
In particular, speaking about the situation in Syria, Sargsyan said
that Armenia advocates an immediate cessation of hostilities in this
Middle Eastern country and a peaceful resolution of the internal
conflict exclusively by the citizens of Syria. He also stressed that
Armenia will continue to help ethnic Armenians in Aleppo as well as
Syrian Armenians who are already in Yerevan.
In regards to the Karabakh conflict, the Armenian leader criticized
Azerbaijan for its `unconstructive' approach to the current settlement
effort and its continuing war rhetoric and belligerent policies.
`We are convinced that the only solution to existing conflicts is the
way of negotiations. We proceed from the fact that after the ceasefire
was reached between the conflicting sides [in Karabakh], especially
that it has held for 18 years, the resumption of military operations
or even a threat of renewed hostilities is a direct violation of the
norms and principles of international law,' said the president of
Armenia. `This is the most short-sighted path towards a new tide of
violence, hatred and bloodshed. Problems do not get solved this way,
but they only get more complicated.'
Sargsyan also slammed the Azerbaijani government over what he called
propaganda of hatred and hostility towards Armenians among its
citizens. He, in particular, cited the so-called Safarov Affair as
proof to his words.
`As a matter of fact, killing an Armenian is no longer a crime in
Azerbaijan,' said Sargsyan, referring to the case of Ramil Safarov,
who had been serving a life sentence in a Hungarian jail for a brutal
killing of a sleeping Armenian officer at a NATO-sponsored language
course in 2004 before being handed over and controversially pardoned
in Azerbaijan on August 31.
The president's comments came the same day the Kremlin hosted a
EurAsEC summit. Before the meetings many analysts in Yerevan expected
that Sargsyan would be `made' to sign certain documents pledging
Armenia's closer cooperation with these organizations, but no such
thing has been announced afterwards.
Earlier, however, Eurasian Economic Commission Board Chairman Victor
Khristenko announced that the Customs Union expected to sign documents
on cooperation with Armenia in early 2013 (when Putin is expected to
visit Armenia).
In a Wednesday interview with the Russian newspaper, Vedomosti,
Khristenko made a number of interesting comments in this regard.
To the paper's question on whether there are other countries willing
to join the Russia-Belarus-Kazakhstan Customs Union, Khristenko said:
`Recently, we arranged with the Government of Armenia that we would
sign a memorandum similar to that we have with Ukraine. I think that
in the case with Armenia progress will be more intensive than in the
case with Ukraine.'
In response to the Vedomosti correspondent's remark that Armenia has
no common borders with the Customs Union, Khristenko said: `It seems
an insurmountable obstacle to many. But in my view it is not so.
Russia, too, has an exclave of Kaliningrad. Given the developed level
of communications existing today, the Customs Union can definitely
have an exclave. Of course, Armenia has very sensitive infrastructure
constraints as the sole transport corridor leading to the Customs
Union passes through Georgia. But Armenia's strategic interest is
obvious and it makes Armenia a Eurasian country.'
`We should consider all interesting formats. In general, the world is
changing, and we may get new interaction models in our arsenal, models
that haven't been there before,' said the official, without
elaborating.
This interview has reassured observers that Armenia, which is
currently striving to sign an association agreement with the European
Union, will have to continue her maneuvering between Moscow and
Brussels in the time to come. Analysts do not rule out that Putin's
Russia may use plans to raise natural gas prices and secret scenarios
to prevent Sargsyan's smooth reelection in February as trump cards in
the unfolding battle for allegiances.
http://armenianow.com/news/42167/serzh_sargsyan_moscow_vladimir_putin_osce_csto_eur asec
have reviewed key geopolitical issues
News | 20.12.12 | 12:08
Photo: www.president.am
By Siranuysh Gevorgyan
ArmeniaNow reporter
The presidents of Armenia and Russia met in Moscow Wednesday evening
on the sidelines of a major gathering of several post-Soviet leaders
in the Russian capital.
Very few details of the meeting between Serzh Sargsyan and Vladimir
Putin have been released by their press offices in Yerevan and Moscow.
According to the Armenian presidential press service, the two leaders
discussed `Armenian-Russian strategic relations, including issues of
deepening cooperation in areas of mutual interest.'
The terse report, however, may actually be indicative of quite serious
issues being discussed at the meeting, like Armenia's possible
accession to the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, or a
nascent Eurasian Union (EAU), a Putin-advocated re-integration project
for former Soviet republics. Recently, officials in Armenia have been
talking more about developing closer ties with the European Union.
Many say EAU and EU are, in fact, mutually exclusive.
Before his meeting with Putin, Sargsyan took part in the summit of the
Collective Security Treaty Organization, a Russia-led defense pact
that besides Armenia also includes Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and
Tajikistan. The Armenian leader made a speech at the gathering,
addressing issues like the Karabakh settlement and the Syria crisis.
In particular, speaking about the situation in Syria, Sargsyan said
that Armenia advocates an immediate cessation of hostilities in this
Middle Eastern country and a peaceful resolution of the internal
conflict exclusively by the citizens of Syria. He also stressed that
Armenia will continue to help ethnic Armenians in Aleppo as well as
Syrian Armenians who are already in Yerevan.
In regards to the Karabakh conflict, the Armenian leader criticized
Azerbaijan for its `unconstructive' approach to the current settlement
effort and its continuing war rhetoric and belligerent policies.
`We are convinced that the only solution to existing conflicts is the
way of negotiations. We proceed from the fact that after the ceasefire
was reached between the conflicting sides [in Karabakh], especially
that it has held for 18 years, the resumption of military operations
or even a threat of renewed hostilities is a direct violation of the
norms and principles of international law,' said the president of
Armenia. `This is the most short-sighted path towards a new tide of
violence, hatred and bloodshed. Problems do not get solved this way,
but they only get more complicated.'
Sargsyan also slammed the Azerbaijani government over what he called
propaganda of hatred and hostility towards Armenians among its
citizens. He, in particular, cited the so-called Safarov Affair as
proof to his words.
`As a matter of fact, killing an Armenian is no longer a crime in
Azerbaijan,' said Sargsyan, referring to the case of Ramil Safarov,
who had been serving a life sentence in a Hungarian jail for a brutal
killing of a sleeping Armenian officer at a NATO-sponsored language
course in 2004 before being handed over and controversially pardoned
in Azerbaijan on August 31.
The president's comments came the same day the Kremlin hosted a
EurAsEC summit. Before the meetings many analysts in Yerevan expected
that Sargsyan would be `made' to sign certain documents pledging
Armenia's closer cooperation with these organizations, but no such
thing has been announced afterwards.
Earlier, however, Eurasian Economic Commission Board Chairman Victor
Khristenko announced that the Customs Union expected to sign documents
on cooperation with Armenia in early 2013 (when Putin is expected to
visit Armenia).
In a Wednesday interview with the Russian newspaper, Vedomosti,
Khristenko made a number of interesting comments in this regard.
To the paper's question on whether there are other countries willing
to join the Russia-Belarus-Kazakhstan Customs Union, Khristenko said:
`Recently, we arranged with the Government of Armenia that we would
sign a memorandum similar to that we have with Ukraine. I think that
in the case with Armenia progress will be more intensive than in the
case with Ukraine.'
In response to the Vedomosti correspondent's remark that Armenia has
no common borders with the Customs Union, Khristenko said: `It seems
an insurmountable obstacle to many. But in my view it is not so.
Russia, too, has an exclave of Kaliningrad. Given the developed level
of communications existing today, the Customs Union can definitely
have an exclave. Of course, Armenia has very sensitive infrastructure
constraints as the sole transport corridor leading to the Customs
Union passes through Georgia. But Armenia's strategic interest is
obvious and it makes Armenia a Eurasian country.'
`We should consider all interesting formats. In general, the world is
changing, and we may get new interaction models in our arsenal, models
that haven't been there before,' said the official, without
elaborating.
This interview has reassured observers that Armenia, which is
currently striving to sign an association agreement with the European
Union, will have to continue her maneuvering between Moscow and
Brussels in the time to come. Analysts do not rule out that Putin's
Russia may use plans to raise natural gas prices and secret scenarios
to prevent Sargsyan's smooth reelection in February as trump cards in
the unfolding battle for allegiances.
http://armenianow.com/news/42167/serzh_sargsyan_moscow_vladimir_putin_osce_csto_eur asec