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'COMPLEMENTARY' MANEUVER: ARMENIA TRYING TO GET SECURITY FROM RUSSIA, WHILE ECONOMICALLY INTEGRATING WITH EUROPE
By Naira Hayrumyan
ArmeniaNow
23.05.12 | 15:03
The conflict between Russia and the West is apparently becoming the
main dividing line in the domestic politics of Armenia. The split along
this line occurs both within the opposition and pro-government forces.
Aram Sargsyan, the leader of the Hanrapetutyun party, who was number
three on the proportional list of the opposition Armenian National
Congress (ANC), gave up his mandate in parliament and announced its
departure from the ANC. As it turned out later, the main disagreement
with the ANC was around the relations between Armenia and Russia.
In an interview with RFE/RL's Armenian Service Sargsyan said that
only pro-Russian forces now remain within the ANC. "I consider
myself a citizen of Armenia. I see the future of my country linked to
Western standards. I do not see anything we can learn from Russia,"
said Sargsyan.
Hovhannes Hovhannisyan, the leader of the Liberal Party of Armenia
that also left the ANC, is also known to be an advocate of Armenia's
pro-Western orientation.
Experts believe that the ruling coalition in Armenia is also being
formed in accordance with the attitudes of political forces towards
Russia and the West. Immediately after the May 6 parliamentary
elections President Serzh Sargsyan left for Moscow where he attended
the summits of the CIS and the Russia-dominated Collective Security
Treaty Organization (CSTO). However, he stopped short of making
statements about the intention of Armenia to join the Eurasian Union,
an emerging reintegration alliance proposed by Russian President
Vladimir Putin. Moreover, Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan
simultaneously published an article in one of Russia's leading
periodicals, arguing that while joining the Eurasian Union would give
Armenia some benefit, a qualitative change for the nation's economy
was only possible with European integration.
And on April 27, before the elections in Armenia, the Russian
Rossiyskaya Gazeta published an interview with the leader of the
Prosperous Armenia Party (PAP) Gagik Tsarukyan. In that interview
Tsarukyan clearly pronounced in favor of the Putin idea of the
Eurasian Union. "We have already stated that we are ready to work
actively towards the dissemination of the idea of a Eurasian Union.
The evidence of this is the international forum "The Role of NGOs
in the formation of a Eurasian Union" that we are holding in Yerevan
these days jointly with the Russian Eurasian Cooperation Development
Fund," he said then.
The fact that while in Moscow President Sargsyan was not received by
President Putin was also evaluated by experts as the sign of Russia's
discontent with the results of the Armenian elections that gave a
landslide victory to Sargsyan's Republican Party. In fact, in the
May 6 elections Moscow supported the PAP and the second president of
Armenia, Robert Kocharyan, who is believed to stand behind the PAP.
Moreover, according to media reports, Kocharyan is in Moscow these
days. It is not clear whether his current visit to Moscow is connected
to politics or his business interests.
However, not everything is as straightforward as it might seem at first
glance. Unlike Georgia, which sharply terminated its relationship
with Russia and made a turn towards the West, Armenia is trying to
get security guarantees as part of its relations with Russia and
within the CSTO, while relying on the European direction for economic
integration. It is not yet clear whether such a "complementary"
maneuver will work, but it is now patently clear that Armenia does
not want to mix economy and security.
By Naira Hayrumyan
ArmeniaNow
23.05.12 | 15:03
The conflict between Russia and the West is apparently becoming the
main dividing line in the domestic politics of Armenia. The split along
this line occurs both within the opposition and pro-government forces.
Aram Sargsyan, the leader of the Hanrapetutyun party, who was number
three on the proportional list of the opposition Armenian National
Congress (ANC), gave up his mandate in parliament and announced its
departure from the ANC. As it turned out later, the main disagreement
with the ANC was around the relations between Armenia and Russia.
In an interview with RFE/RL's Armenian Service Sargsyan said that
only pro-Russian forces now remain within the ANC. "I consider
myself a citizen of Armenia. I see the future of my country linked to
Western standards. I do not see anything we can learn from Russia,"
said Sargsyan.
Hovhannes Hovhannisyan, the leader of the Liberal Party of Armenia
that also left the ANC, is also known to be an advocate of Armenia's
pro-Western orientation.
Experts believe that the ruling coalition in Armenia is also being
formed in accordance with the attitudes of political forces towards
Russia and the West. Immediately after the May 6 parliamentary
elections President Serzh Sargsyan left for Moscow where he attended
the summits of the CIS and the Russia-dominated Collective Security
Treaty Organization (CSTO). However, he stopped short of making
statements about the intention of Armenia to join the Eurasian Union,
an emerging reintegration alliance proposed by Russian President
Vladimir Putin. Moreover, Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan
simultaneously published an article in one of Russia's leading
periodicals, arguing that while joining the Eurasian Union would give
Armenia some benefit, a qualitative change for the nation's economy
was only possible with European integration.
And on April 27, before the elections in Armenia, the Russian
Rossiyskaya Gazeta published an interview with the leader of the
Prosperous Armenia Party (PAP) Gagik Tsarukyan. In that interview
Tsarukyan clearly pronounced in favor of the Putin idea of the
Eurasian Union. "We have already stated that we are ready to work
actively towards the dissemination of the idea of a Eurasian Union.
The evidence of this is the international forum "The Role of NGOs
in the formation of a Eurasian Union" that we are holding in Yerevan
these days jointly with the Russian Eurasian Cooperation Development
Fund," he said then.
The fact that while in Moscow President Sargsyan was not received by
President Putin was also evaluated by experts as the sign of Russia's
discontent with the results of the Armenian elections that gave a
landslide victory to Sargsyan's Republican Party. In fact, in the
May 6 elections Moscow supported the PAP and the second president of
Armenia, Robert Kocharyan, who is believed to stand behind the PAP.
Moreover, according to media reports, Kocharyan is in Moscow these
days. It is not clear whether his current visit to Moscow is connected
to politics or his business interests.
However, not everything is as straightforward as it might seem at first
glance. Unlike Georgia, which sharply terminated its relationship
with Russia and made a turn towards the West, Armenia is trying to
get security guarantees as part of its relations with Russia and
within the CSTO, while relying on the European direction for economic
integration. It is not yet clear whether such a "complementary"
maneuver will work, but it is now patently clear that Armenia does
not want to mix economy and security.