– On May 7, 2009, the Eastern partnership project was launched. What do you think about the success of this project during this time? Is it possible to do more than it was done till now?
– Due to the Eastern Partnership project the relations between Armenia and the EU were shifted to a new level aimed at closer cooperation, as well as political and economic integration. This new format of cooperation is like a “free horse-riding”, which means that the specific relations between the separate Eastern countries and EU depend on the effectiveness of the implemented actions and steps. Armenia has been very active in all the tools the EU has announced in order to foster priority integration with Europe, Of course it does not sound serious to say that we have been success in all sectors and we are fully ready for economic and political association. One thing is clear that within the country we have consensus between the authorities and opposition concerning the integration with Europe, i.e. we have made the right choice to adopt the vector to Europe, and now we need to make concrete steps toward the four platforms envisaged by the Eastern partnership project. Recently I participated in the presentation of the Eastern Partnership civil society national platform and I believe it is very important because the civil society plays a big role in fostering the priorities of the partnership.
As for the process of the Eastern Partnership, there is a small problem here, which is the fact that the works of the “Euronest” format of the Eastern partnership is being delayed. It is worth mentioning that among the partners Armenia was the first one to form a national delegation in the Euronest and was the first one to send recommendations and comments concerning the charter of the Euronest. The parliamentary format of partnership is being delayed due to well-known reasons. I believe that by using the flexible tools of diplomacy this format will do a highly effective work both in bilateral and multi-lateral relations, which is an important component of the Eastern Partnership.
– It is much spoken about the preparation of an associated agreement with the EU. What do you think about such possibility? Can Armenia fulfill the requirements which are necessary for it?
– The European Union has got a mandate to start negotiations on signing an associated agreement with Armenia, and these negotiations will start in the near future. It is hard to say how long these negotiations will last because it is about the efficiency of the actions Armenia may undertake to solve the assigned issues. These are a lot of issues such as issues in the sectors of the administration system, corruption, customs services, justice reforms, human rights protection, etc. Yes, we have serious issues and I believe if we try well, the negotiations on the associated agreement will be success.
-The Eastern Partnership project is the continuation and component of the New Neighborhood Policy. What do you the about the efficiency of the New Neighborhood Policy project? As the head of the committee on European integration, how closer has Armenia approached to Europe?
– As I have already said, the Eastern partnership, unlike the Neighborhood Policy, envisages a new quality phase of relations, the efficiency of which depends exclusively on the political will of our country. The Neighborhood Policy and all its tools have worked very effectively, but in the past our region was viewed by the EU as one united unit, which required one common approach. The Eastern Partnership project envisages closer bilateral relations with the EU, in which the incentive will be Armenia’s willingness to drive the adopted platforms forward. As for the question how closer we have approached Europe, we have always been bearers of that very European system of values.