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SARKISIAN CALLS FOR EU PRESSURE ON TURKEY
http://asbarez.com/111435/sarkisian-calls-for-eu-pressure-on-turkey/
Friday, July 12th, 2013
President Serzh Sarkisian (L) at a news conference in Chisinau.
CHISINAU, Moldova-Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian at a news
conference in Chisinau has urged the European Union to press Turkey
to normalize relations with Armenia, saying that the closed border
between the two neighboring states will hamper the implementation of
Yerevan's forthcoming Association Agreement with the EU.
"Within the framework of the [EU's] Eastern Partnership, Armenia
attaches great importance to ending the practice of closed borders,"
Sarkisian said during a visit to Moldova late on Thursday.
"The agreement on the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA),
which is currently being negotiated with the European Union, cannot
work in full, after coming into force, if the Armenian-Turkish border
remains closed. We think that the European Union should seriously
address the issue of closed borders because their existence cannot
make trade with the EU's customs union effective," he said.
The Armenian leader referred to the customs union of the EU member
states and Turkey that came into effect in 1996, abolishing virtually
all trade barriers. The DCFTA is a similar arrangement that will be
a key element of the Armenia-EU Association Agreement.
The EU has long been advocating an unconditional normalization
of Turkish-Armenian relations. Accordingly, it strongly backed
normalization protocols signed by Ankara and Yerevan in 2009. The
Turkish government makes their parliamentary ratification conditional
on a resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict acceptable to
Azerbaijan. The Armenian side rejects this precondition.
EU leaders have likewise called for an unconditional implementation
of the protocols. But they do not seem to have raised the matter in
ongoing talks on Turkey's membership of the EU.
The European Union's Eastern Partnership program for Armenia and five
other former Soviet republics is not designed to weaken their links
with Russia or any other state, Sarkisian insisted late on Thursday.
"From our perspective, the Eastern Partnership is an initiative aimed
at creating cooperation rather than differences. It is not directed
against any state or grouping of states. This partnership is aimed at
finally overcoming division lines," he said during a visit to Moldova.
Sarkisian was speaking at a joint news conference in Chisinau with the
leaders of Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia whose parties are affiliated
with the European People's Party (EPP). They, as well as EPP President
Wilfried Martens, addressed the media after discussing preparations
for an EU summit on the Eastern Partnership due in November. The
EU is expected to finalize "association agreements" with Armenia,
Georgia and Moldova during that summit.
Sarkisian's remarks came amid signs that Russia, which has viewed
the Eastern Partnership with suspicion, is unhappy with Armenia's
plans to conclude the association accord and hence avoid joining a
proposed Eurasia Union of ex-Soviet states loyal to Moscow.
In an interview published on Monday, Vyacheslav Kovalenko, until
recently Russia's ambassador to Armenia, warned that Yerevan will
undermine its close ties with Moscow if it steers clear of the
Russian-led union. Konstantin Zatulin, a prominent Russian pundit and
former parliamentarian, likewise criticized "the disdainful attitude
to the Eurasian integration project in Armenia" on Thursday.
"The West is competing with Russia, trying to impede any integration
processes in the Eurasian space," Zatulin told the Regnum news agency.
"He who sides with our competitor will face consequences of that
choice," he warned.
The Russian government has so far issued no such warnings in public.
Sarkisian insisted in March that Yerevan is not under Russian pressure
to promise membership of the Eurasian Union.
http://asbarez.com/111435/sarkisian-calls-for-eu-pressure-on-turkey/
Friday, July 12th, 2013
President Serzh Sarkisian (L) at a news conference in Chisinau.
CHISINAU, Moldova-Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian at a news
conference in Chisinau has urged the European Union to press Turkey
to normalize relations with Armenia, saying that the closed border
between the two neighboring states will hamper the implementation of
Yerevan's forthcoming Association Agreement with the EU.
"Within the framework of the [EU's] Eastern Partnership, Armenia
attaches great importance to ending the practice of closed borders,"
Sarkisian said during a visit to Moldova late on Thursday.
"The agreement on the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA),
which is currently being negotiated with the European Union, cannot
work in full, after coming into force, if the Armenian-Turkish border
remains closed. We think that the European Union should seriously
address the issue of closed borders because their existence cannot
make trade with the EU's customs union effective," he said.
The Armenian leader referred to the customs union of the EU member
states and Turkey that came into effect in 1996, abolishing virtually
all trade barriers. The DCFTA is a similar arrangement that will be
a key element of the Armenia-EU Association Agreement.
The EU has long been advocating an unconditional normalization
of Turkish-Armenian relations. Accordingly, it strongly backed
normalization protocols signed by Ankara and Yerevan in 2009. The
Turkish government makes their parliamentary ratification conditional
on a resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict acceptable to
Azerbaijan. The Armenian side rejects this precondition.
EU leaders have likewise called for an unconditional implementation
of the protocols. But they do not seem to have raised the matter in
ongoing talks on Turkey's membership of the EU.
The European Union's Eastern Partnership program for Armenia and five
other former Soviet republics is not designed to weaken their links
with Russia or any other state, Sarkisian insisted late on Thursday.
"From our perspective, the Eastern Partnership is an initiative aimed
at creating cooperation rather than differences. It is not directed
against any state or grouping of states. This partnership is aimed at
finally overcoming division lines," he said during a visit to Moldova.
Sarkisian was speaking at a joint news conference in Chisinau with the
leaders of Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia whose parties are affiliated
with the European People's Party (EPP). They, as well as EPP President
Wilfried Martens, addressed the media after discussing preparations
for an EU summit on the Eastern Partnership due in November. The
EU is expected to finalize "association agreements" with Armenia,
Georgia and Moldova during that summit.
Sarkisian's remarks came amid signs that Russia, which has viewed
the Eastern Partnership with suspicion, is unhappy with Armenia's
plans to conclude the association accord and hence avoid joining a
proposed Eurasia Union of ex-Soviet states loyal to Moscow.
In an interview published on Monday, Vyacheslav Kovalenko, until
recently Russia's ambassador to Armenia, warned that Yerevan will
undermine its close ties with Moscow if it steers clear of the
Russian-led union. Konstantin Zatulin, a prominent Russian pundit and
former parliamentarian, likewise criticized "the disdainful attitude
to the Eurasian integration project in Armenia" on Thursday.
"The West is competing with Russia, trying to impede any integration
processes in the Eurasian space," Zatulin told the Regnum news agency.
"He who sides with our competitor will face consequences of that
choice," he warned.
The Russian government has so far issued no such warnings in public.
Sarkisian insisted in March that Yerevan is not under Russian pressure
to promise membership of the Eurasian Union.