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ARMENIAN POLITICIANS ON CLINTON'S VISIT
tert.am
04.06.12
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is arriving in Armenia later
today as part of her regional visit to the South Caucasus. In that
connection, Tert.am has talked to Heritage party member Styopa
Safaryan, and the head of the Union of Political Analysts, Hmayak
Hovhannisyan, to know their opinion of the scheduled tour.
Safaryan, who represented the opposition Heritage party faction in
the previous parliament, finds that the secretary's visit a clear
message signaling her serious position on the region's westernization.
"Hillary Clinton's visit demonstrates the importance Armenia and the
South Caucasus have for the United States. Armenia significance grows,
with Iran being its [southern] neighbor," he noted.
Hmayak Hovhannisyan believes Clinton will propose a new agenda,
considering the developments in Syria and Arab countries.
"The situation in the region has really changed, so it is necessary,
against that backdrop, to finalize the geo-political orientation
of each South-Caucasus state," he said, noting that Clinton has not
randomly chosen Armenia as her first stop.
"That seems to be a signal that the United States finds Armenia's
approaches of landmark importance in terms determining the expectations
or questions to be posed to Georgia and Azerbaijan," he said.
The expert believes that the United States expects Armenia to finalize
its choice between Nato cooperation programs and the Eurasian Union
plan. He says Armenia's stance is not so clear as in the neighboring
Georgia and Azerbaijan.
"The second largest political force in parliament says, at least,
it favors cooperation with the Eurasian Union," Hovhannisyan added.
According to him, the agenda could include also other issues, such
as the renewal of the Armenia-Turkey process and attempts to boost
the Karabakh conflict settlement.
From: A. Papazian
tert.am
04.06.12
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is arriving in Armenia later
today as part of her regional visit to the South Caucasus. In that
connection, Tert.am has talked to Heritage party member Styopa
Safaryan, and the head of the Union of Political Analysts, Hmayak
Hovhannisyan, to know their opinion of the scheduled tour.
Safaryan, who represented the opposition Heritage party faction in
the previous parliament, finds that the secretary's visit a clear
message signaling her serious position on the region's westernization.
"Hillary Clinton's visit demonstrates the importance Armenia and the
South Caucasus have for the United States. Armenia significance grows,
with Iran being its [southern] neighbor," he noted.
Hmayak Hovhannisyan believes Clinton will propose a new agenda,
considering the developments in Syria and Arab countries.
"The situation in the region has really changed, so it is necessary,
against that backdrop, to finalize the geo-political orientation
of each South-Caucasus state," he said, noting that Clinton has not
randomly chosen Armenia as her first stop.
"That seems to be a signal that the United States finds Armenia's
approaches of landmark importance in terms determining the expectations
or questions to be posed to Georgia and Azerbaijan," he said.
The expert believes that the United States expects Armenia to finalize
its choice between Nato cooperation programs and the Eurasian Union
plan. He says Armenia's stance is not so clear as in the neighboring
Georgia and Azerbaijan.
"The second largest political force in parliament says, at least,
it favors cooperation with the Eurasian Union," Hovhannisyan added.
According to him, the agenda could include also other issues, such
as the renewal of the Armenia-Turkey process and attempts to boost
the Karabakh conflict settlement.
From: A. Papazian