ArmInfo. "Armenia is ready to sign a new agreement with the EU," Chairman of the Standing Committee on Foreign Relations of the National Assembly of Armenia Armen Ashotyan stated at a meeting with journalists on November 11.
According to him, readiness for signing the agreement was also announced from the European side. "We are already planning more, you probably already know that even before signing the agreement, the parliamentary commission decided to appoint extended parliamentary hearings on December 1," Ashotyan said. At the same time, as the parliamentarian pointed out, this, in addition to providing a number of organizational issues, is, in a sense, a political message, demonstrating the desire of the Armenian side to sign this agreement.
The head of the Standing Committee on Foreign Relations of the Parliament stressed that after signing this agreement, Armenia pretends to become a vivid example of the principle "More for more" ("more for more", or "each according to merit", ed.), Proclaimed by the EU. The Republic, as Ashotyan noted, will eventually be able to destroy the stereotype formed in the EU that Georgia occupies a special place in the South Caucasus region from the point of view of democratic reforms, regardless of the level of development and democratization in Armenia and Azerbaijan. According to Ashotyan, the ultimate goal of the agreement for Armenia is to ensure that RA ordinary citizens, as a result of ongoing reforms, live in a better country. It is also an opportunity for Armenia, finally, to distance itself from Azerbaijan in terms of implementing reforms and democratic reforms.
Earlier, the head of the parliamentary commission on foreign affairs Armen Ashotyan expressed hope that the European Union will demonstrate the political will towards the early signing of the Agreement on an expanded and comprehensive partnership with Armenia, stressing that administration of such documents by the European side quite complex, certain technical issues may arise. He reminded that all EU countries should sign the document, meanwhile, many of them are currently in the pre-election cycle. "Nevertheless, I hope that the EU will show political will and the document will be signed soon," he said, stressing that Armenia is ready to sign the document at the forthcoming Eastern Partnership summit in November, and this was announced by the highest the country's leadership. Ashotyan also stressed the importance of the fact that the document fixes the provision on the necessity of a peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group. "This means that the EU officially emphasizes its disagreement with the destructive policy of Baku in the Karabakh settlement," he said.
The document consists of 357 pages and 386 chapters and regulates the general principles, approaches and values of political and economic cooperation between Armenia and the EU. As for the economic component of the document, it says that Armenia should bring its economic policy in line with EU standards. In turn, the EU undertakes to assist in ensuring the independence of the Central Bank of Armenia, the stability of prices in the country's market, and its financial reliability. In the political part of the document, the emphasis is on simplifying the visa regime and starting a dialogue on its liberalization with a view to stimulating mutual visits of RA and EU citizens. The agreement also contains provisions on the Karabakh conflict. The document emphasizes the importance of Armenia's readiness to settle the Karabakh conflict peacefully and the need for its early resolution within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group. The document also talks about Armenia's obligation to close the nuclear power plant and build a new one. Note that it was originally announced that the document was signed in November at the Eastern Partnership summit in Riga, but now many experts predict that the signing will not take place in the announced terms. Initially, the parties also did not announce the promulgation of the document until its final signing, but by mutual consent it was decided to familiarize the Armenian and EU societies with it before signing. The signing of a framework agreement with the EU is planned during the Eastern Partnership summit in Brussels on November 24.