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WHAT OFFICIAL YEREVAN WANTED
HAKOB BADALYAN
Story from Lragir.am News:
http://www.lragir.am/engsrc/politics26664.html
Published: 17:43:31 - 25/06/2012
Regnum reported that the Lithuanian minister of defense Rasa
Jukneviciene told BNS in a telephone interview, "Armenia's interest
in this visit was big. They made every effort to make sure it takes
places, though Lithuania is in a pre-election year and I must spend
a lot of time in the Seim. Therefore, the visit is held on weekend,
which shows the great wish and focus of Armenia to cooperate with
NATO and the EU."
It is not a secret that the Baltic states, namely Lithuania and Latvia,
are the main channels through which Armenia works with NATO and the
EU. Not always is it possible to get in direct touch with NATO and
EU leaders or leaders of leading states of these organizations.
Meanwhile, contacts at the level of resident diplomatic missions
cannot compare to this level of contacts.
In this situation additional channels come to rescue, such as contacts
with the Baltic States which do not provide the level of leaders of
leading EU member states but ensure a considerably higher level of
communication than that of embassies.
Hence, the interview of the Lithuanian minister is evidence that
their visit and meeting with the Armenian government was requested by
Yerevan. It is interesting to know what official Yerevan needed to pass
to NATO, considering that the meeting was with the minister of defense.
Interestingly, the visit coincided with the commandership and staff
stage of the three-day CSTO military exercise to be held in September.
The Armenian minister of defense had announced earlier that this stage
would be held on June 25-27 on the topic of military governance in
the period of war and undertaking key measures to resist aggression.
Seyran Ohanyan had asked the heads of all the public administration
bodies to prepare for this event. According to him, it will bring
Armenia to a high level military alert.
"In this context we will prepare appropriate orders on martial law,
mobilization, containment of aggression. The president of Armenia will
request the CSTO leadership to support us, to prepare and participate
appropriately in this stage on 25, 26 and 27," Seiran Ohanyan said.
It is not ruled out that in this regard Armenia needed some
communication with NATO at a higher level than the level of embassies.
On the other hand, a number of other events coincided with this visit,
namely the escalation in Syria.
Hence, official Yerevan may have several reasons for communication
with NATO.
On the whole, the problem has a wider geopolitical context and fits
the logic of deepening relations with the West and strengthening
Armenia. In the long run, the global and regional developments are
evidence that there is no alternative to this deepening. Armenia
must promote internal reforms to make it more effective and ensure
the required level of sovereignty not to allow a primitive process
of passing from under the Russian to the Western umbrella. These
attempts are not only primitive but also dangerous.
The starting point of choice by official Yerevan must be the national
interest of Armenia which requires modernization, competitiveness,
update of military and civil technology and values, redesign, at
least diversification.
>From this point of view, NATO-Armenia and generally West-Armenia
interaction can be valuable for the Armenian national interest.
HAKOB BADALYAN
Story from Lragir.am News:
http://www.lragir.am/engsrc/politics26664.html
Published: 17:43:31 - 25/06/2012
Regnum reported that the Lithuanian minister of defense Rasa
Jukneviciene told BNS in a telephone interview, "Armenia's interest
in this visit was big. They made every effort to make sure it takes
places, though Lithuania is in a pre-election year and I must spend
a lot of time in the Seim. Therefore, the visit is held on weekend,
which shows the great wish and focus of Armenia to cooperate with
NATO and the EU."
It is not a secret that the Baltic states, namely Lithuania and Latvia,
are the main channels through which Armenia works with NATO and the
EU. Not always is it possible to get in direct touch with NATO and
EU leaders or leaders of leading states of these organizations.
Meanwhile, contacts at the level of resident diplomatic missions
cannot compare to this level of contacts.
In this situation additional channels come to rescue, such as contacts
with the Baltic States which do not provide the level of leaders of
leading EU member states but ensure a considerably higher level of
communication than that of embassies.
Hence, the interview of the Lithuanian minister is evidence that
their visit and meeting with the Armenian government was requested by
Yerevan. It is interesting to know what official Yerevan needed to pass
to NATO, considering that the meeting was with the minister of defense.
Interestingly, the visit coincided with the commandership and staff
stage of the three-day CSTO military exercise to be held in September.
The Armenian minister of defense had announced earlier that this stage
would be held on June 25-27 on the topic of military governance in
the period of war and undertaking key measures to resist aggression.
Seyran Ohanyan had asked the heads of all the public administration
bodies to prepare for this event. According to him, it will bring
Armenia to a high level military alert.
"In this context we will prepare appropriate orders on martial law,
mobilization, containment of aggression. The president of Armenia will
request the CSTO leadership to support us, to prepare and participate
appropriately in this stage on 25, 26 and 27," Seiran Ohanyan said.
It is not ruled out that in this regard Armenia needed some
communication with NATO at a higher level than the level of embassies.
On the other hand, a number of other events coincided with this visit,
namely the escalation in Syria.
Hence, official Yerevan may have several reasons for communication
with NATO.
On the whole, the problem has a wider geopolitical context and fits
the logic of deepening relations with the West and strengthening
Armenia. In the long run, the global and regional developments are
evidence that there is no alternative to this deepening. Armenia
must promote internal reforms to make it more effective and ensure
the required level of sovereignty not to allow a primitive process
of passing from under the Russian to the Western umbrella. These
attempts are not only primitive but also dangerous.
The starting point of choice by official Yerevan must be the national
interest of Armenia which requires modernization, competitiveness,
update of military and civil technology and values, redesign, at
least diversification.
>From this point of view, NATO-Armenia and generally West-Armenia
interaction can be valuable for the Armenian national interest.