RUSSIA BECAME STRONGER BECAUSE ARMENIA BECAME WEAKER
Lragir.am
25-05-2007 16:53:50
To go or not to go to NATO? On May 25 this question was raised during
a discussion on May 25 in Yerevan. The main speakers to the discussion
held by the Agreement Center and Friedrich Ebert Fund were Jirair
Liparityan, foreign adviser to the first president of Armenia, and a
Washington-based Armenian analyst Richard Giragosian. They hold
different opinions. Richard Giragosian also says the relation of the
three South Caucasian countries may have a positive impact on security
in the Caucasus.
Jirair Liparityan holds the opposite opinion. He asks if there is any
question that the South Caucasian countries must solve and which can
be solved by NATO. Jirair Liparityan says NATO is a tool for the
United States, and the political elite of the United States is in
uncertainty over its vision of the world: hegemony of the United
States or a multi-pole world. `The United States does not know what
relations it will have with Russia, China, India, Iran, the Near East
and even Europe,’ Jirair Liparityan says. He says with this
uncertainty if the three Caucasian states will promote relations with
NATO, it is more probable that instead of solving the problems of
security it will aggravate controversies.
Richard Giragosian says Armenia cannot afford not to collaborate with
NATO. According to the analyst, it will first promote the isolation
of NATO and our country will be ignored, besides, by promoting
relations with NATO Armenia may rid of the influence of Russia,
Richard Giragosian thinks. According to him, the major mistake of
Armenia was that the country’s elite thought Russia holds more
interest in Armenia than the West. On the other hand, according to the
analyst, the West thought mistakenly that Armenia has greater interest
in Russia than in reality.
Jirair Liparityan says Armenia today is isolated, and is of no
international interest. And according to Jirair Liparityan, the reason
is that the Armenian state has become weaker and has lost all the
alternatives. The reason for weakening is, according to Liparityan,
that the country today does not solve the important issues it has with
its neighbors and inside the country. And not going to NATO is not a
way out, Jirair Liparityan says.