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When Head of State Writes Down His Memoires
Interview with Dr. Haik Martirosyan, University of Sorbonne (New York)
How can Armenia regain its credit in Europe?
Faith and confidence are usually not found in politics or they play a
secondary role. Pragmatism prevails. Obviously, both the EU and its
representative, Commissioner Fule, were shocked by Armenia's U-turn.
Nevertheless, the commissioner's words also hint at awareness of the
reasons of the U-turn. So, the problem of loss of confidence is
secondary. Official Yerevan was willing to sign the Association
Agreement but failed to. Obviously, Fule's criticism was addressed to
another country, not official Yerevan. As to restoring faith and
confidence, it is really hard to do. It is hard to tell what other
U-turns should be expected from Armenia. We are living in an extremely
uncertain and unstable time with ongoing political and historical
revisions on a global level. The behavior of such a country as Armenia
could be determined by the situation in place. In order to have
confidence and faith the EU ought to have displayed earlier and deeper
interest in Armenia and been more active in fostering domestic and
economic reforms.
Was Serzh Sargsyan's move determined by pressure with regards to the NKR issue?
This question will be officially answered on the day when the head of
state writes down his memoires and publishes them. Meanwhile, Fule did
not have to make such blunt statements. His interview with Radio
Liberty was the most sincere, emotional and non-diplomatic interview I
have ever seen, and it speaks a lot. The unofficial yet factual answer
does not need the president's confession and the commissioner's
sincerity. Yes, it is hard to imagine another reason apart from
Karabakh. It is Armenia's Achilles' heel, and the big players of the
region know where it is.
What are the possible implications of Armenia's membership to the Customs Union?
I don't think we will have an economic progress. I also don't think
that such standards will be extended to us that would give us a boost
to a higher level of quality. Even the founders of the union lack such
standards. I also don't think that Armenian products will be
competitive. The market may be flooded with exported goods which will
jeopardize competitiveness of local production. On the other hand,
some monopolies may be shattered or eliminated. We'll see.
Fule says they will not give up on Armenia. In your opinion, in what
format will they continue to work with Armenia?
What Fule is saying can be from diplomacy where the uttered word means
the opposite. Either the EU will turn its face from Armenia or will
come up with more attractive proposals. Since Armenia might be
punished severely by the key member state of the Customs Union for
refusal to join the Customs Union equivocally, it is not difficult to
suppose that Europe will need to stop fostering hopes relating to
Armenia. This situation may change suddenly but it is already
determined by circumstances that are hard to predict.
23:54 21/09/2013
Story from Lragir.am News:
http://www.lragir.am/index/eng/0/interview/view/30940
From: Baghdasarian
Interview with Dr. Haik Martirosyan, University of Sorbonne (New York)
How can Armenia regain its credit in Europe?
Faith and confidence are usually not found in politics or they play a
secondary role. Pragmatism prevails. Obviously, both the EU and its
representative, Commissioner Fule, were shocked by Armenia's U-turn.
Nevertheless, the commissioner's words also hint at awareness of the
reasons of the U-turn. So, the problem of loss of confidence is
secondary. Official Yerevan was willing to sign the Association
Agreement but failed to. Obviously, Fule's criticism was addressed to
another country, not official Yerevan. As to restoring faith and
confidence, it is really hard to do. It is hard to tell what other
U-turns should be expected from Armenia. We are living in an extremely
uncertain and unstable time with ongoing political and historical
revisions on a global level. The behavior of such a country as Armenia
could be determined by the situation in place. In order to have
confidence and faith the EU ought to have displayed earlier and deeper
interest in Armenia and been more active in fostering domestic and
economic reforms.
Was Serzh Sargsyan's move determined by pressure with regards to the NKR issue?
This question will be officially answered on the day when the head of
state writes down his memoires and publishes them. Meanwhile, Fule did
not have to make such blunt statements. His interview with Radio
Liberty was the most sincere, emotional and non-diplomatic interview I
have ever seen, and it speaks a lot. The unofficial yet factual answer
does not need the president's confession and the commissioner's
sincerity. Yes, it is hard to imagine another reason apart from
Karabakh. It is Armenia's Achilles' heel, and the big players of the
region know where it is.
What are the possible implications of Armenia's membership to the Customs Union?
I don't think we will have an economic progress. I also don't think
that such standards will be extended to us that would give us a boost
to a higher level of quality. Even the founders of the union lack such
standards. I also don't think that Armenian products will be
competitive. The market may be flooded with exported goods which will
jeopardize competitiveness of local production. On the other hand,
some monopolies may be shattered or eliminated. We'll see.
Fule says they will not give up on Armenia. In your opinion, in what
format will they continue to work with Armenia?
What Fule is saying can be from diplomacy where the uttered word means
the opposite. Either the EU will turn its face from Armenia or will
come up with more attractive proposals. Since Armenia might be
punished severely by the key member state of the Customs Union for
refusal to join the Customs Union equivocally, it is not difficult to
suppose that Europe will need to stop fostering hopes relating to
Armenia. This situation may change suddenly but it is already
determined by circumstances that are hard to predict.
23:54 21/09/2013
Story from Lragir.am News:
http://www.lragir.am/index/eng/0/interview/view/30940
From: Baghdasarian