H. KOTANJIAN SAYS THE ORGANIZATION OF TWO YEREVAN CONFERENCES ON THE SITUATION IN SOUTH CAUCASUS WAS UNPRECEDENTED
ARMENPRESS
MAY 21, 2009
YEREVAN
Two representative conferences have lately been organized in Yerevan
on the situation in South Caucasus. In response to the question of
Armenpress what was the concurrent organization of these representative
conferences conditioned by the head of the Institute of National
Strategic Studies (INSS) of the Armenian Defense Ministry, consultant
to the Defense Minister, Doctor of Historical Sciences Hayk Kotanjian
noted that conduction of the two conferences – one organized by the
INSS the other by the National Security Council was not accidental. It
was planned for juxtaposing of academic and political recourses of
state institutes.
"The conference organized by our institute, in which international
well known analysts took part, was experimental. The National
Security Council organized a conference in political format with the
participation of state high-ranking officials," H. Kotanjian said.
Stressing that concurrent organization of the two conferences was
unprecedented he noted that the fact testifies of the wide scales
and efficiency of the initiative of the Armenian authorities.
Referring to the results of the conference organized by them,
H. Kotanjian noted that the institute continues to actively cooperate
with the state and non-governmental "brain centers" of OSCE Minsk Group
chairing states. In October last year the INSS held a joint conference
with the project of security of Black Sea region of the School of
Statehood Science of Harvard University; the Yerevan conference was
held in collaboration with the Lyon Centre for International Security
and Defense Studies of "Jan Mullin" University.
"Leading specialists of security studies from France do not arrive
in Armenia frequently and it gave us an opportunity to get better
acquainted with their position," he said.
According to H. Kotanjian the scientific conference organized by
the institute was intrinsically an arena for exchange of thoughts
between the independent experts seeking for ways of solution of south
Caucasian conflicts. Most of them are consultants to the authorities
who make decisions of strategic importance for the region.
"In this context during the conference mediated messages of 20 experts
from 8 countries also sounded which were addressed to the authorities
of states and international organizations which are involved in the
process of framing a new architecture of security of Europe and south
Caucasian region," consultant to the Armenian Defense Minister said.