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OVER CUSTOMS BARRIER. ARMENIA WILL UNOFFICIALLY TAKE NAGORNO-KARABAKH INTO CUSTOMS UNION
Gazeta.ru , Russia
Sept 26 2013
by Zhanna Ulyanova
Armenia's joining the Customs Union with the participation of Russia,
Kazakhstan, and Belarus accords with the interests of Nagorno-Karabakh,
the authorities in the unrecognized republic say.
Stepanakert doubts, however, that the union's present members will
permit Nagorno-Karabakh's participation in the customs and economic
partnership. Analysts believe that the unrecognized republic will
enter the Customs Union zone along with Armenia by default.
Armenia's joining the Customs Union, whose members are
Russia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus, accords with the interests of
Nagorno-Karabakh, David Babayan, press secretary to the president of
the unrecognized republic, told Gazeta.ru. But Stepanakert does not
believe that Yerevan's trade and economic integration into the Eurasian
Economic Community will promote Nagorno-Karabakh's recognition as a
subject of international law.
"We believe that Armenia's decision to join the Customs Union accords
with the interests of Nagorno-Karabakh. But talk to the effect
that after joining the Customs Union opportunities will emerge for
Nagorno-Karabakh to be recognized by the union's member countries or
by the union itself as an international intergovernmental organization
is an expression of the wishes of certain politicians rather than a
real prospect," Babayan said.
However, the Nagorno-Karabakh Government is certain that Armenia's
membership of the Customs Union guarantees stability and the peaceful
resolution of the conflict around the self-proclaimed state.
Yerevan, on the contrary, links the decision that Armenian President
Serzha Sargsyan adopted in his 3 September Moscow meeting with Vladimir
Putin not only with a desire to secure Moscow's support but also with
an attempt to ensure international recognition for Nagorno-Karabakh. On
3 September Sargsyan put an end to two years of maneuvering between
the Customs Union and the EU. He announced Armenia's wish to begin the
process of integration into the Eurasian area, thereby renouncing the
initialing of the EU association agreement that was to have taken place
in November this year at the "Eastern Partnership" summit in Vilnius.
The ruling Republican Party of Armenia [RPA] stated the need to link
Nagorno-Karabakh's recognition with joining the Customs Union. The
mechanism for this kind of recognition can be implemented through
the drawing up of customs documentation, Gagik Minasyan, deputy for
the RPA faction and head of the Permanent Parliamentary Commission
on Financial, Credit, and Budget Issues, pointed out earlier.
Karen Ogandzhanyan, a Karabakh human rights campaigner, does not
believe in Sargsyan's intention to return Nagorno-Karabakh to the
legal international field by way of joining the Customs Union. "Those
who make such claims are misleading the Armenian people and trying
to level in the eyes of the public the Armenian president's one-man
decision to join the Customs Union - a decision that will undoubtedly
have negative consequences," Ogandzhanyan believes.
The Armenian Government has already approved a program of measures for
the republic to join the Customs Union. The joining procedure will be
long and complex, Vladimir Lepekhin, director of the Eurasian Economic
Community Institute, pointed out. "For this it is necessary to adopt
several dozen interstate agreements. For a year now Kyrgyzstan has been
tackling the technological part of integration into the Customs Union,
and to all intents and purposes the agreements will begin functioning
only from January 2015," the expert said.
Taking into account the absence of common borders with the Customs
Union countries, Armenia will obtain a special status of membership
of the trade and economic area.
Lepekhin believes that the decision on where the borders of the Customs
Union will lie - taking or not taking Nagorno-Karabakh into account -
will be made by Yerevan, without pressure from Moscow.
"Armenia understands the importance of Customs Union expansion to
Russia. For now Yerevan has only expressed readiness to join and will
now start shaping its terms, which might go beyond the economy and
concern recognition of Karabakh," the political analyst said. But even
if such a position is delineated, it will be discussed at presidential
level and not in public.
Analysts believe that the Customs Union countries are not interested
in recognizing Nagorno-Karabakh, but the unrecognized state may find
itself unofficially in the zone of trade and economic partnership.
"Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh constitute a single economic area:
The Armenian currency and banking system operate in Stepanakert,
and the legislative systems are extremely close. Mindful of these
special features, Armenia will conduct the negotiating process over
the form of joining the Customs Union," Armenian political analyst
Aleksandr Iskandaryan, director of the Caucasian Media Institute,
said. He regards the likelihood of Nagorno-Karabakh being recognized
by the Customs Union countries as an "exotic scenario."
The territory of Nagorno-Karabakh will most likely enjoy
the preferences of the trade and economic agreement by default,
Iskandaryan believes.
Karen Ogandzhanyan sees no possibility of the self-proclaimed republic
participating in the Customs Union. "Karabakh cannot, a priori,
be included in the Customs Union without its independence being
recognized by the union's member countries. What is more, neither
Russia, nor Belarus, nor, still more so, Kazakhstan will ever permit
even the tenuous participation of Nagorno-Karabakh in such a union. It
should not be forgotten that Belarus once saved Azerbaijan's credit,
and Russia recently secured very promising prospects to exploit and
transport hydrocarbons from fields being worked by Azerbaijan.
Kazakhstan is the only country to have come out loudly in the past
against Armenia joining the Customs Union along with Karabakh,"
Ogandzhanyan recalled.
"Armenia's integration into the Customs Union will most likely
provide Nagorno-Karabakh with additional opportunities to export
output to the Russian market," Babayan said. "Nagorno-Karabakh is
able to concentrate on ecologically clean output, alcoholic products,
and the development of tourism."
Azerbaijan has perceived Armenia's intention to integrate into the
Customs Union with concern and regards this as confirming Yerevan's
dependence on Moscow, Hikmat Hacizada, Azerbaijan's ex-ambassador
to Russia and president of the FAR Center for Economic and Political
Research, said.
"Once again we have seen for ourselves that Armenia is not free in
its political choice, since earlier it was intending to sign the
agreement on associate membership of the EU but unexpectedly altered
its decision. This is all very sad for Azerbaijan. Russia does not
need any particular reasons to recognize Karabakh, but so far it has
not done this," Hacizada pointed out.
[Translated from Russian]
From: A. Papazian
Gazeta.ru , Russia
Sept 26 2013
by Zhanna Ulyanova
Armenia's joining the Customs Union with the participation of Russia,
Kazakhstan, and Belarus accords with the interests of Nagorno-Karabakh,
the authorities in the unrecognized republic say.
Stepanakert doubts, however, that the union's present members will
permit Nagorno-Karabakh's participation in the customs and economic
partnership. Analysts believe that the unrecognized republic will
enter the Customs Union zone along with Armenia by default.
Armenia's joining the Customs Union, whose members are
Russia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus, accords with the interests of
Nagorno-Karabakh, David Babayan, press secretary to the president of
the unrecognized republic, told Gazeta.ru. But Stepanakert does not
believe that Yerevan's trade and economic integration into the Eurasian
Economic Community will promote Nagorno-Karabakh's recognition as a
subject of international law.
"We believe that Armenia's decision to join the Customs Union accords
with the interests of Nagorno-Karabakh. But talk to the effect
that after joining the Customs Union opportunities will emerge for
Nagorno-Karabakh to be recognized by the union's member countries or
by the union itself as an international intergovernmental organization
is an expression of the wishes of certain politicians rather than a
real prospect," Babayan said.
However, the Nagorno-Karabakh Government is certain that Armenia's
membership of the Customs Union guarantees stability and the peaceful
resolution of the conflict around the self-proclaimed state.
Yerevan, on the contrary, links the decision that Armenian President
Serzha Sargsyan adopted in his 3 September Moscow meeting with Vladimir
Putin not only with a desire to secure Moscow's support but also with
an attempt to ensure international recognition for Nagorno-Karabakh. On
3 September Sargsyan put an end to two years of maneuvering between
the Customs Union and the EU. He announced Armenia's wish to begin the
process of integration into the Eurasian area, thereby renouncing the
initialing of the EU association agreement that was to have taken place
in November this year at the "Eastern Partnership" summit in Vilnius.
The ruling Republican Party of Armenia [RPA] stated the need to link
Nagorno-Karabakh's recognition with joining the Customs Union. The
mechanism for this kind of recognition can be implemented through
the drawing up of customs documentation, Gagik Minasyan, deputy for
the RPA faction and head of the Permanent Parliamentary Commission
on Financial, Credit, and Budget Issues, pointed out earlier.
Karen Ogandzhanyan, a Karabakh human rights campaigner, does not
believe in Sargsyan's intention to return Nagorno-Karabakh to the
legal international field by way of joining the Customs Union. "Those
who make such claims are misleading the Armenian people and trying
to level in the eyes of the public the Armenian president's one-man
decision to join the Customs Union - a decision that will undoubtedly
have negative consequences," Ogandzhanyan believes.
The Armenian Government has already approved a program of measures for
the republic to join the Customs Union. The joining procedure will be
long and complex, Vladimir Lepekhin, director of the Eurasian Economic
Community Institute, pointed out. "For this it is necessary to adopt
several dozen interstate agreements. For a year now Kyrgyzstan has been
tackling the technological part of integration into the Customs Union,
and to all intents and purposes the agreements will begin functioning
only from January 2015," the expert said.
Taking into account the absence of common borders with the Customs
Union countries, Armenia will obtain a special status of membership
of the trade and economic area.
Lepekhin believes that the decision on where the borders of the Customs
Union will lie - taking or not taking Nagorno-Karabakh into account -
will be made by Yerevan, without pressure from Moscow.
"Armenia understands the importance of Customs Union expansion to
Russia. For now Yerevan has only expressed readiness to join and will
now start shaping its terms, which might go beyond the economy and
concern recognition of Karabakh," the political analyst said. But even
if such a position is delineated, it will be discussed at presidential
level and not in public.
Analysts believe that the Customs Union countries are not interested
in recognizing Nagorno-Karabakh, but the unrecognized state may find
itself unofficially in the zone of trade and economic partnership.
"Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh constitute a single economic area:
The Armenian currency and banking system operate in Stepanakert,
and the legislative systems are extremely close. Mindful of these
special features, Armenia will conduct the negotiating process over
the form of joining the Customs Union," Armenian political analyst
Aleksandr Iskandaryan, director of the Caucasian Media Institute,
said. He regards the likelihood of Nagorno-Karabakh being recognized
by the Customs Union countries as an "exotic scenario."
The territory of Nagorno-Karabakh will most likely enjoy
the preferences of the trade and economic agreement by default,
Iskandaryan believes.
Karen Ogandzhanyan sees no possibility of the self-proclaimed republic
participating in the Customs Union. "Karabakh cannot, a priori,
be included in the Customs Union without its independence being
recognized by the union's member countries. What is more, neither
Russia, nor Belarus, nor, still more so, Kazakhstan will ever permit
even the tenuous participation of Nagorno-Karabakh in such a union. It
should not be forgotten that Belarus once saved Azerbaijan's credit,
and Russia recently secured very promising prospects to exploit and
transport hydrocarbons from fields being worked by Azerbaijan.
Kazakhstan is the only country to have come out loudly in the past
against Armenia joining the Customs Union along with Karabakh,"
Ogandzhanyan recalled.
"Armenia's integration into the Customs Union will most likely
provide Nagorno-Karabakh with additional opportunities to export
output to the Russian market," Babayan said. "Nagorno-Karabakh is
able to concentrate on ecologically clean output, alcoholic products,
and the development of tourism."
Azerbaijan has perceived Armenia's intention to integrate into the
Customs Union with concern and regards this as confirming Yerevan's
dependence on Moscow, Hikmat Hacizada, Azerbaijan's ex-ambassador
to Russia and president of the FAR Center for Economic and Political
Research, said.
"Once again we have seen for ourselves that Armenia is not free in
its political choice, since earlier it was intending to sign the
agreement on associate membership of the EU but unexpectedly altered
its decision. This is all very sad for Azerbaijan. Russia does not
need any particular reasons to recognize Karabakh, but so far it has
not done this," Hacizada pointed out.
[Translated from Russian]
From: A. Papazian