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"EU INTRODUCES COOPERATION, AND NOT COMPETITION TO THE REGION"

Interview of Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia Arman
Kirakosyan to Mediamax Agency

– What is your assessment of development of relations between Armenia
and EU?

– In the recent years, relations between Armenia and the European
Union have been developing successively and incrementally. We have
entered a new level both as to the forms and as to the content of
cooperation. Today, the EU becomes stronger not only as a global and
regional partner for Armenia, but also in the context of wide agenda
of our domestic reforms. Armenia’s Action Plan within the framework of
European Neighborhood Policy (ENP), which has been in process of
implementation since 2007, is the best manifestation of that multitask
cooperation.

– Is such development of relations a result of EU’s regional policy or
a result of bilateral cooperation between Armenia and EU?

– I think that EU’s regional policy and its approaches to Armenia do
not contradict each other, moreover, they integrally interweave. In
relations with Armenia, great attention is paid to regional
cooperation, but at the same time, Armenia itself influences on the
formation of EU’s regional policy. At that, one should not forget
about the fact that EU keeps to accurate regional approaches, the fact
being expressed in presenting similar initiatives and cooperation
proposals to all the countries of the region. Basing on his, one can
say that the forms of cooperation have more regional coverage, but the
content is more bilateral.

– Does the same logic serve as a basis for EU Eastern Partnership?

– Eastern Partnership attaches a more complete look to EU policy
concerning its eastern neighbors. It is fully based on principles,
fixed in ENP and makes them more applicable with the use of concrete
cooperation mechanisms.

– Can one say that Eastern Partnership will become a part of ENP?

– EU Council, in which representatives of EU member-states discuss the
detailed description of the proposal on Eastern Partnership,
elaborated by the European Commission, will give the final answer to
the given issue. It is expected that the process will be concluded in
April, 2009, expecting that a Summit with the participation of leaders
of EU and Eastern Partnership countries will be called in May. Taking
this into account, I would prefer not to make any assessments as to
the interconnection of ENP and Eastern Partnership before the latter
is approved by EU Council, since shifts of certain emphases are yet
possible.

At the same time, the approaches of the European Commission evidence
that Eastern Partnership will aim at deepening cooperation with
eastern neighbors, which has been realized so far within the framework
of ENP. I believe that Eastern Partnership, which, according to plans,
is to be realized in the format of EU 27 member-states, five ENP
participant-states and Belarus, can sooner be considered not as a part
of ENP, but as continuation of the latter, being different by its
quality and depth.

– What will that quality change be?

– The most significant difference is that Eastern Partnership
establishes more clear-cut parameters for cooperation. It not only
assists modernization processes in partner-states, but also formulates
the goals, which should be reached as a result of their
development. In the sphere of trade-economic cooperation, this goal is
the establishment of a more detailed and all-comprehensive free trade
regime, in the sphere of migration – facilitation of visa order, and
its liberalization further on.

Such an approach gives the opportunity to establish new contractual
relationships between partner-states and the EU. EU is ready to offer
associated agreements, which will substitute the current Partnership
and cooperation agreements, to countries, which have such
aspiration. The contracts will be elaborated in accordance with the
readiness of each country; they will fix the necessity for gradual
concordance with legislative and administrative functions of EU. The
parameters of economic integration, cooperation in the sphere of
migration and energy will also be reflected in associated contracts.

Agreements will also contain cooperation components on issues of
common foreign and defense policy of EU, European security and defense
policy.

Eastern Partnership also provides for more active cooperation between
EU members and partner-states in political modernization and
democratization of the latter.

And, finally, Eastern Partnership proposes to form a multilateral
format of cooperation, within the framework of which EU member states
and partners will cooperate on the same wide agenda, as in bilateral
format.

– Are the parameters you mentioned related to prospects for
partner-countries’ full membership in EU?

– In this issue, the approaches of ENP and Eastern Partnership are
practically identical – participation in those initiatives does not
predetermine the membership of partner-states in EU.

– Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Belarus will
become participants of Eastern Partnership. How realistic is it to
assume that all those countries have similar European aspirations?

– Indeed, despite the fact that all those countries face similar
challenges of political and economic modernization, the approaches and
the perceptions in individual cases seriously differ. This factor is
determined by the special approach of the EU, which is known as the
principle of differentiation, which is a basis for ENP and Eastern
Partnership. As a result, all the sides are offered equal
opportunities for cooperation, and the sides are the ones to define
its volumes and depth.

– Can we expect that Eastern Partnership will in the course of time
become an international organization?

– It is premature talking about that. The proposal, which is in
process of discussion today, provides for establishment of cooperation
platforms in four subject directions – political, trade-economic,
energy and public contacts.

– Taking into account the fact that Azerbaijan has prejudices
concerning the efforts to involve Armenia in any regional format, what
will the relations between Yerevan and Baku within the framework of
Eastern Partnership be?

– The establishment of multilateral cooperation, aiming at reaching
economic wellness and common values with the participation of
countries, which have problematic points in their relations, is the
historic achievement of Europe. Basing on this, Armenia has always
supported the proposals on regional cooperation. Azerbaijan keeps to a
diametrically opposite approach, which so far has not provided an
opportunity to fully use European initiatives.

I believe that Azerbaijan will realize and will take constructive part
in multilateral format of Eastern Partnership, which may contribute to
formation of an atmosphere of trust in our region.

– How fully is Armenia itself ready to be involved in European
Partnership? Does the present level of democratization and rule of law
in Armenia meet the requirements, necessary to form more ambitious
cooperation programs with EU?

– Armenia became one of the first countries, which stated its support
for Eastern Partnership – back, when it was expressed in the form of a
joint proposal by Poland and Sweden. This support was fixed in the
Armenia-EU Joint Declaration, signed during November visit of the
Armenian President Serzh Sargsian to Brussels. Cooperation, realized
within the framework of ENP, allows Armenia fully developing it in the
format of Eastern Partnership as well. One can only note that Armenia
has already started cooperation with EU within the framework of ENP on
two key issues of the Eastern Partnership – agreement as to the zone
of free trade and the process to facilitate visa order.

Concerning the domestic political reforms, I can say that Armenia has
always demonstrated will to solve the existing issues through
cooperation. The agreement signed during the visit of the Armenian
President on sending an EU Advisory Team, which would render
consultation assistance to state administrative bodies in the sphere
of consolidating democracy and securing the rule of law, evidences the
fact. Such systematic form of cooperation is concordant with the
approaches of Eastern Partnership on consolidating democratic
institutions.

– Won’t the new initiative by EU become a reason for new discords
between the great powers in the region?

– I believe that the recent events in the region showed that EU has
good will and opportunities to ease acute conflicts and to move them
in the direction of resolution. It is obvious that EU introduces
cooperation, and not competition in the region. Besides,
implementation of political and economic reforms by the countries of
the region on a similar agenda may give the region a new element of
stability and trust.