ARMINFO News Agency
September 29, 2006 Friday
ARMENIAN OPPOSITIONIST CRITICIZES CURRENT LEVEL OF ARMENIAN-RUSSIAN
RELATIONS
Today Armenian-Russian coopeartion often goes down from the level of
inter-state relations to the level of inter-clan ties between groups
of corrupt officials, says the leader of the opposition New Times
party Aram Karapetyan.
As a result, instead of creating JVs, especially in spheres where
Armenia is not self-sufficient, the sides sign agreements like Assets
Against Debts. Karapetyan strongly objects to the transfer of
Armenia’s property to other countries. It would be quite a different
story if Russia decided to set up, say, a JV to develop aircraft
construction in Armenia – a sphere our country has nothing to do
with.
Karapetyan says that the Assets Against Debts agreement was signed as
a result of pressure. This is an American approach – when a country
gains foothold in a region by obtaining its property. That’s exactly
what Russia is doing in Armenia. The participants in the
anti-criminal movement are going to investigate into the
circumstances of the singing of the Assets Against Debts agreement.
Karapetyan’s opponent RPA member Hamlet Haroutyunyan says that there
is hardly any politician in Armenia who will agree to grant our
strategic spheres to other countries. There was no pressure during
the singing of the Assets Against Debts agreement. As regards the
concessions to Russia, this is done for ensuring Armenia’s national
security.
To remind, Armenia has given Russia 5 companies against its $100 mln
debt to that country: Hrazdan thermal power plant, research
institutes of mathematical sciences, material study amd automatized
control systems and Mars plant.