Newly appointed Prime Minister Serge Sargsyan gave an interview to “Financial Times” on April 9.
“We have taken on responsibilities with regards to different programs, and the implementation of those programs is driven by our interests. We want to become a member of the European family,” said Sargsyan in regard to the upcoming National Assembly elections.
The “Financial Times” writes that “despite the two-digit economic growth rate of the past couple of years, one third of the 3 million population of this Caucasian country lives in extreme poverty”. Referring to this issue, Sargsyan mentioned that “it is difficult to talk about democracy and human rights when you have to take care of the social and economic needs of the population.” He added that Armenia does not want to be a country deeply rooted in the transition period. Prime Minister Sargsyan also discussed the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Armenian-Turkish relations and the cosmopolitan developments taking place in the region. With regards to the clash of interests of great powers in the South Caucasus, Sargsyan said:
“Some use the contradictions of the great powers and others co-operate with them. We prefer to co-operate. There are many conflicts in our region”.
Sargsyan also said that he would like to see Armenia join the EU some day. Referring to Armenia-NATO relations, Sargsyan said that despite the close ties with NATO, the issue of joining NATO is not on the agenda of official Yerevan.