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SPEECH OF SERZH SARGSYAN AT THE OPENING OF THE FOURTH ORDINARY SESSION OF THE EURONEST PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY
16:55 | March 17,2015 | Official
Distinguished Chairman of the National Assembly,
Distinguished Co-Chairs of the Assembly,
Distinguished members of the EURONEST Parliamentary Assembly,
It is a pleasure to greet you in Yerevan on the occasion of your
participation in the Fourth Ordinary Session of the EURONEST
Parliamentary Assembly.
This week can be considered to be a truly "European" one for us: we
are glad to host the EURONEST Session in Yerevan, after which I will
depart for Brussels to participate in the EPP Summit. Both in Yerevan
and Brussels I am scheduled to meet with the high level EU officials,
and a few days later the Session of the Armenia-EU Parliamentary
Cooperation Committee will take place here in Yerevan. It is good
that relations between Armenia and EU are developing dynamically.
I believe strongly that discussions to be held and resolutions to be
adopted in the parliamentary dimension under the extensive list of
agenda items of the EURONEST Session will contribute to the deepening
of cooperation between the European Union and partner nations in a
number of areas.
Among those items are infrastructure and transport cooperation, energy
efficiency and renewable sources of energy, dialogue in the area of
culture. It is also a high time to exchange opinions in reviewing the
European Neighborhood Policy and on the preparations for the upcoming
Eastern Partnership Summit.
I highly value the inter-parliamentary cooperation in the framework
of the Eastern Partnership. It is significant and plays an important
role in the whole system of our relations with the European Union. The
Yerevan Session of the EURONEST Parliamentary Assembly is a good
opportunity to conduct a broad and open exchange of views and opinions,
genuine dialogue on the issues that are important for our society.
I believe that inter-parliamentary discussions will let us form
correct assessment of the challenges that our nations face as well
as let us attempt to find joint avenues to overcome cooperatively
those challenges.
It is noteworthy that our cooperation towards making system of
pan-European values the citizens' property, its promotion and rooting
engages both the parliamentary and civil society circles. Armenia
today is a country of free speech and free media, we have got freedom
of assembly, established civil society, which is well aware of its
rights, and how it can struggle for its rights.
With the aim to further improve the democratic processes in Armenia
we have initiated constitutional reforms, which pursue the objective
of improving the constitutional mechanisms for implementation of the
rule of law and safeguarding fundamental human rights and freedoms.
Distinguished ladies and gentlemen,
Building on shared values Armenia is committed to the development of
cooperation with the European Union directed at continued improvement
of the democratic institutions and judiciary system, good governance,
fight against corruption, consolidation of civil society, further
improvement of the business environment for the expansion of trade
and investment, continued implementation of mobility and partnership
and expansion of the sectoral cooperation.
We attach great importance to the steps to secure people to people
contacts and free movement with the EU. We also anticipate support
of the parliamentarians in the forthcoming launching of the dialogue
with the EU for a visa-free regime to be established for our citizens.
We are convinced that by joining efforts we will be able to arrive at
joint approaches based on opportunities instead of incompatibilities,
and thus secure for our citizens an opportunity to take best advantage
of various integration formats, which in its turn will consolidate
cooperation and let us avoid new confrontations on the European
continent.
We build upon the premise that it is possible to accommodate both
the Armenia's membership to the Eurasian Economic Union, with all
commitments stemming thereof, and the European Union's deep and
comprehensive agenda. Moreover, we will attempt to explore compatible
middle ground through establishment of close ties between the various
integration processes, and thus contribute to the consolidation of
shared pan-European values free of contradictions and dividing lines.
Honorable Members of the Assembly,
This year the whole Armenian nation has been joined by the civilized
world in commemorating victims of the Armenian Genocide that took
place in the Ottoman Empire in 1915.
We recall with gratitude and highly value the role of the European
Parliament in the recognition of the Armenian Genocide. It was the
first among pan-European institutions to adopt in 1987 a resolution
condemning that crime perpetrated against Armenians in the territory
of the Ottoman Empire and calling upon the Turkish government to
recognize it.
The Armenian Genocide is not only the tragedy of our nation but also a
world-scale crime against civilization and humanity, which reminds us
of the failure to learn from history, dangers of a genocide denial,
as well as the long-term negative consequences of letting this type
of crime to go unpunished and unrecognized.
The respect towards human rights is the pillar of the European Union
values upon which our cooperation is built. In that context I highly
value The Annual Report on Human Rights and Democracy in the world
2013 adopted by the European Parliament on March 12, which contained
a separate paragraph addressing the Armenian Genocide Centennial and
called upon all Member States to acknowledge it, and encouraged the
EU institutions to contribute further to its recognition.
With regard to the resolution of the Nagorno Karabakh problem I would
like to underline that we are not going to transform this platform
into a propaganda tool or conduit to sow interethnic hostility, as it
has been the case in Azerbaijan. We will try to take best advantage of
the opportunities provided by this Assembly for the benefit of peaceful
coexistence and cooperation of our nations. The best testimony to what
I just stated was active participation of the Armenian delegations
in a wide range of events that took place in Azerbaijan, including
the Ordinary Session that took place in Baku back in 2012.
I regret that Azerbaijani side evades meeting us halfway by responding
to our steps towards constructive dialogue.
It is though more disturbing that our neighboring State demonstrates
unconstructive and maximalist stance in the very process of the
peaceful resolution of the Karabakh conflict by backtracking on the
already agreed points, by consistently trying to change the format of
the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship or to launch negotiations on the
great treaty without registering agreement on the basic principles. It
should be obvious that the keys to the settlement of this issue are not
located in Paris, Moscow or Washington, but in Baku, Stepanakert and
Yerevan. Meanwhile, Azerbaijan invents far-fetched excuses in order to
avoid the settlement based on the principles proposed by the Co-Chairs.
I think such tactics of that country deserves unequivocal assessment
of the international community and European institutions.
Regardless of Azerbaijan's unrealistic claims and periodic provocations
carried out on the Line-of-Contact there is no alternative to the
peaceful resolution of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. It has been the
position of international community, especially in the recent years,
that there is no alternative to the comprehensive settlement of this
conflict but by the exercise of the people's right to free expression
of their will and self-determination, which is grounded in the
European and universal values. This conflict can be comprehensively
settled through the free exercise of this right by the people of
Nagorno-Karabakh. That is the approach upon which the proposal of
the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs is built.
Distinguished Members of the Assembly,
I again warmly welcome you upon the commencement of the Fourth
Ordinary Session of the EURONEST Parliamentary Assembly, and wish
you constructive discussions and fruitful work.
Thank you for your attention.
http://en.a1plus.am/1207943.html
16:55 | March 17,2015 | Official
Distinguished Chairman of the National Assembly,
Distinguished Co-Chairs of the Assembly,
Distinguished members of the EURONEST Parliamentary Assembly,
It is a pleasure to greet you in Yerevan on the occasion of your
participation in the Fourth Ordinary Session of the EURONEST
Parliamentary Assembly.
This week can be considered to be a truly "European" one for us: we
are glad to host the EURONEST Session in Yerevan, after which I will
depart for Brussels to participate in the EPP Summit. Both in Yerevan
and Brussels I am scheduled to meet with the high level EU officials,
and a few days later the Session of the Armenia-EU Parliamentary
Cooperation Committee will take place here in Yerevan. It is good
that relations between Armenia and EU are developing dynamically.
I believe strongly that discussions to be held and resolutions to be
adopted in the parliamentary dimension under the extensive list of
agenda items of the EURONEST Session will contribute to the deepening
of cooperation between the European Union and partner nations in a
number of areas.
Among those items are infrastructure and transport cooperation, energy
efficiency and renewable sources of energy, dialogue in the area of
culture. It is also a high time to exchange opinions in reviewing the
European Neighborhood Policy and on the preparations for the upcoming
Eastern Partnership Summit.
I highly value the inter-parliamentary cooperation in the framework
of the Eastern Partnership. It is significant and plays an important
role in the whole system of our relations with the European Union. The
Yerevan Session of the EURONEST Parliamentary Assembly is a good
opportunity to conduct a broad and open exchange of views and opinions,
genuine dialogue on the issues that are important for our society.
I believe that inter-parliamentary discussions will let us form
correct assessment of the challenges that our nations face as well
as let us attempt to find joint avenues to overcome cooperatively
those challenges.
It is noteworthy that our cooperation towards making system of
pan-European values the citizens' property, its promotion and rooting
engages both the parliamentary and civil society circles. Armenia
today is a country of free speech and free media, we have got freedom
of assembly, established civil society, which is well aware of its
rights, and how it can struggle for its rights.
With the aim to further improve the democratic processes in Armenia
we have initiated constitutional reforms, which pursue the objective
of improving the constitutional mechanisms for implementation of the
rule of law and safeguarding fundamental human rights and freedoms.
Distinguished ladies and gentlemen,
Building on shared values Armenia is committed to the development of
cooperation with the European Union directed at continued improvement
of the democratic institutions and judiciary system, good governance,
fight against corruption, consolidation of civil society, further
improvement of the business environment for the expansion of trade
and investment, continued implementation of mobility and partnership
and expansion of the sectoral cooperation.
We attach great importance to the steps to secure people to people
contacts and free movement with the EU. We also anticipate support
of the parliamentarians in the forthcoming launching of the dialogue
with the EU for a visa-free regime to be established for our citizens.
We are convinced that by joining efforts we will be able to arrive at
joint approaches based on opportunities instead of incompatibilities,
and thus secure for our citizens an opportunity to take best advantage
of various integration formats, which in its turn will consolidate
cooperation and let us avoid new confrontations on the European
continent.
We build upon the premise that it is possible to accommodate both
the Armenia's membership to the Eurasian Economic Union, with all
commitments stemming thereof, and the European Union's deep and
comprehensive agenda. Moreover, we will attempt to explore compatible
middle ground through establishment of close ties between the various
integration processes, and thus contribute to the consolidation of
shared pan-European values free of contradictions and dividing lines.
Honorable Members of the Assembly,
This year the whole Armenian nation has been joined by the civilized
world in commemorating victims of the Armenian Genocide that took
place in the Ottoman Empire in 1915.
We recall with gratitude and highly value the role of the European
Parliament in the recognition of the Armenian Genocide. It was the
first among pan-European institutions to adopt in 1987 a resolution
condemning that crime perpetrated against Armenians in the territory
of the Ottoman Empire and calling upon the Turkish government to
recognize it.
The Armenian Genocide is not only the tragedy of our nation but also a
world-scale crime against civilization and humanity, which reminds us
of the failure to learn from history, dangers of a genocide denial,
as well as the long-term negative consequences of letting this type
of crime to go unpunished and unrecognized.
The respect towards human rights is the pillar of the European Union
values upon which our cooperation is built. In that context I highly
value The Annual Report on Human Rights and Democracy in the world
2013 adopted by the European Parliament on March 12, which contained
a separate paragraph addressing the Armenian Genocide Centennial and
called upon all Member States to acknowledge it, and encouraged the
EU institutions to contribute further to its recognition.
With regard to the resolution of the Nagorno Karabakh problem I would
like to underline that we are not going to transform this platform
into a propaganda tool or conduit to sow interethnic hostility, as it
has been the case in Azerbaijan. We will try to take best advantage of
the opportunities provided by this Assembly for the benefit of peaceful
coexistence and cooperation of our nations. The best testimony to what
I just stated was active participation of the Armenian delegations
in a wide range of events that took place in Azerbaijan, including
the Ordinary Session that took place in Baku back in 2012.
I regret that Azerbaijani side evades meeting us halfway by responding
to our steps towards constructive dialogue.
It is though more disturbing that our neighboring State demonstrates
unconstructive and maximalist stance in the very process of the
peaceful resolution of the Karabakh conflict by backtracking on the
already agreed points, by consistently trying to change the format of
the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship or to launch negotiations on the
great treaty without registering agreement on the basic principles. It
should be obvious that the keys to the settlement of this issue are not
located in Paris, Moscow or Washington, but in Baku, Stepanakert and
Yerevan. Meanwhile, Azerbaijan invents far-fetched excuses in order to
avoid the settlement based on the principles proposed by the Co-Chairs.
I think such tactics of that country deserves unequivocal assessment
of the international community and European institutions.
Regardless of Azerbaijan's unrealistic claims and periodic provocations
carried out on the Line-of-Contact there is no alternative to the
peaceful resolution of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. It has been the
position of international community, especially in the recent years,
that there is no alternative to the comprehensive settlement of this
conflict but by the exercise of the people's right to free expression
of their will and self-determination, which is grounded in the
European and universal values. This conflict can be comprehensively
settled through the free exercise of this right by the people of
Nagorno-Karabakh. That is the approach upon which the proposal of
the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs is built.
Distinguished Members of the Assembly,
I again warmly welcome you upon the commencement of the Fourth
Ordinary Session of the EURONEST Parliamentary Assembly, and wish
you constructive discussions and fruitful work.
Thank you for your attention.
http://en.a1plus.am/1207943.html