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US TAKES DIRECT ACTION IN ARMENIA
Vestnik Kavkazussia
Nov 29 2013
29 November 2013 - 9:46am
By David Stepanyan, Yerevan. Exclusively for Vestnik Kavkaza
It seems that the US has taken direct action in Armenia after
its refusal to sign the association agreement with Europe. The
delegation headed by Armenian Minister for Finances David Sarkisyan has
concluded talks in Washington and outlined a set of important fields
of cooperation. First of all, Armenia and the US have started the
process of liberalizing the visa regime. Secondly, US Contour Global,
a hydro-energy company, plans to invest $180 million in Armenia.
The Eastern Partnership was initiated by Poland and Sweden with
US encouragement. Strategy-makers in Brussels wanted it to weaken
Russian influence on the post-Soviet space. Six post-Soviet states
of Eastern Europe and South Caucasus were involved in the partnership
with Europe. Belarus was quickly dissociated from the partnership for
the undemocratic policies of Alexander Lukashenko. Ukraine, Moldova,
Georgia and Armenia expressed a readiness to association agreements
and the DCFTA when Europe proposed a new format of cooperation in 2010.
Yerevan suddenly expressed the will to join the Customs Union on
September 3. Ukraine halted the process of signing the agreement with
the EU for the sake of 'national security.' Communists in Moldova
started mass protests against the 'window to Europe' opened by the
government. Thus, Georgia will be the only one to sign the association
agreement and the DCFTA in Vilnius. For a set of reasons, Washington
predicted the scenario. And, of course, it made its own steps to
preserve and increase influence in the states refusing association. In
the case of Armenia, the idea was realized in the energy sector.
Although neither the US State Department, nor the Armenian government
have said directly, it is clear that they mean the Vorotan Complex of
Hydro Power Plants. 100% of its shares belong to the government. The
company owns the Tatev, Shamb and Spandaryan Dams on the Vorotan
River, producing 404.2MW with an average annual projected output
of 1.16KW/h. The nuclear energy block in Armenia produces 407MW of
electricity, for comparison. So the cascade needs modernization.
The Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and the
International Finance Corporation (IFC) will partly finance the process
together with Contour Global. The investments will be the largest in
the Armenian economy from US company and the first US investments in
the energy sector of Armenia.
Curiously, Russian private and state companies remain the monopolists
in Armenian energy. What matters at this point is the reaction to
the upcoming deal because Russian investments will be mixed with the
US finances for the first time. Some experts in Armenia assume that
the US are switching to the phase of active economic cooperation,
ceding the political aspect to Russia.
http://vestnikkavkaza.net/analysis/economy/48113.html
Vestnik Kavkazussia
Nov 29 2013
29 November 2013 - 9:46am
By David Stepanyan, Yerevan. Exclusively for Vestnik Kavkaza
It seems that the US has taken direct action in Armenia after
its refusal to sign the association agreement with Europe. The
delegation headed by Armenian Minister for Finances David Sarkisyan has
concluded talks in Washington and outlined a set of important fields
of cooperation. First of all, Armenia and the US have started the
process of liberalizing the visa regime. Secondly, US Contour Global,
a hydro-energy company, plans to invest $180 million in Armenia.
The Eastern Partnership was initiated by Poland and Sweden with
US encouragement. Strategy-makers in Brussels wanted it to weaken
Russian influence on the post-Soviet space. Six post-Soviet states
of Eastern Europe and South Caucasus were involved in the partnership
with Europe. Belarus was quickly dissociated from the partnership for
the undemocratic policies of Alexander Lukashenko. Ukraine, Moldova,
Georgia and Armenia expressed a readiness to association agreements
and the DCFTA when Europe proposed a new format of cooperation in 2010.
Yerevan suddenly expressed the will to join the Customs Union on
September 3. Ukraine halted the process of signing the agreement with
the EU for the sake of 'national security.' Communists in Moldova
started mass protests against the 'window to Europe' opened by the
government. Thus, Georgia will be the only one to sign the association
agreement and the DCFTA in Vilnius. For a set of reasons, Washington
predicted the scenario. And, of course, it made its own steps to
preserve and increase influence in the states refusing association. In
the case of Armenia, the idea was realized in the energy sector.
Although neither the US State Department, nor the Armenian government
have said directly, it is clear that they mean the Vorotan Complex of
Hydro Power Plants. 100% of its shares belong to the government. The
company owns the Tatev, Shamb and Spandaryan Dams on the Vorotan
River, producing 404.2MW with an average annual projected output
of 1.16KW/h. The nuclear energy block in Armenia produces 407MW of
electricity, for comparison. So the cascade needs modernization.
The Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and the
International Finance Corporation (IFC) will partly finance the process
together with Contour Global. The investments will be the largest in
the Armenian economy from US company and the first US investments in
the energy sector of Armenia.
Curiously, Russian private and state companies remain the monopolists
in Armenian energy. What matters at this point is the reaction to
the upcoming deal because Russian investments will be mixed with the
US finances for the first time. Some experts in Armenia assume that
the US are switching to the phase of active economic cooperation,
ceding the political aspect to Russia.
http://vestnikkavkaza.net/analysis/economy/48113.html