Armenian opposition leader unhappy about foreign policy
Arminfo
21 Aug 04
YEREVAN
If Armenia does not integrate into global political processes by 2009,
then by 2010, it will turn into a territory populated only by people
speaking Armenian, the chairman of the new Liberal Progressive Party
(LPP), Ovanes Ovanesyan, said at the Azdak discussion club today.
He said that Armenia has lost flexibility in its foreign policy and as
a result, has become a marginal country isolated from all the regional
communication, economic and political processes.
As an example, Ovanesyan said that Armenia was sidelined from the
European Union’s TRACECA [Transportation Corridor
Europe-Caucasus-Asia] and INOGATE [Interstate Oil and Gas Transport to
Europe], as well as from the North-South railway corridor projects.
Ovanesyan believes that the construction of the Iran-Armenia gas
pipeline is also in question as constructing a gas pipeline, which
will be 77mm in diameter, will not do Armenia and Iran any good.
Ovanesyan said that Armenia’s one-sided pro-Russian orientation has
put Armenia in quite a sensitive position. “In the eyes of the
international community, Armenia has turned into Russia’s vassal,
which has made Europe, the USA and NATO turn away from Armenia,” he
said.
Russia highly values Armenia as all its other satellites have gone out
of hand. However, this did not stop Russian Foreign Minister Sergey
Lavrov from stating that Moscow recognizes Azerbaijan’s territorial
integrity and sees the settlement to the Karabakh conflict on the
basis of this principle. Ovanesyan thinks the fact that the Iranian
speaker, who represents another partner of Armenia, Iran, recently
issued a similar statement in Baku proves that Yerevan’s foreign
policy is destructive.
According to him, today the international community is forcing the
Armenian side to accept “the option for settling the Karabakh conflict
which is against its interests”.
Ovanesyan also spoke out against Armenia’s membership of the
Collective Security Treaty Organization since the country has no
common border with any of its members. “The Collective Security Treaty
Organization will not ensure Armenia’s security,” he noted, adding
that Armenia’s neighbours, Georgia and Azerbaijan, are doing their
best to join NATO, which can take place in 2007. In that case, Armenia
will find itself in total isolation, as if need be, the member
countries of the Collective Security Treaty Organization will not be
able to render operational assistance to Armenia through its
neighbours which will already be NATO members.