Gagik Tsarukyan predicts a deterioration in the quality of life of Armenian citizens if the republic`s membership in the Eurasian Economic Union is suspended

ArmInfo. Armenia should not jeopardize existing opportunities within the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), but rather use them for development, expansion, and improving the well-being of the Armenian people. This is how businessman Gagik Tsarukyan, leader of the Prosperous Armenia Party (PAP), responded to a previously published EAEU report on the threats to Armenia's economy in the event of the country's withdrawal from the structure or suspension of membership. In his new message, delivered from the Kentron Penitentiary Institution (PII), he presented the real risks to the Armenian economy from all possible angles.

First of all, according to Tsarukyan, we need to see the people behind all the numbers. "As someone who has experienced real business and production, I see these risks more clearly than anyone else. We need to understand that behind the dry economic report are people. All these "percentages" of falling and rising prices indicate the danger of thousands of businesses closing and going bankrupt, a deterioration in the lives of tens of thousands of families, hundreds of thousands of people, and a sharp decline in well-being. The figures represent the fates of thousands of people. I'm concerned not just about the numbers, but about the possible sharp deterioration in the quality of life of ordinary, real people, our citizens," the politician emphasized.

Another important issue, according to him, is that such an analysis should have been conducted first and foremost in Armenia itself, and not by someone else. "We're talking about our country, our economy, the lives of our citizens. This would speak to our internal seriousness, our responsible attitude. A year before the parliamentary elections, I set the task of organizing and gathering industry specialists, knowledgeable people, so that they could prepare similar scenarios and analyses. Such documents should be developed first and foremost in Armenia, so that we don't deceive ourselves with beautiful, false promises and fairy tales. We need to understand that this is our life at stake. "And if we had done this work ourselves, we would have been much more relaxed about what others are doing," the politician asserted.

The third aspect, according to Tsarukyan, concerns opportunities. That is, as the PAP leader explained, these figures also have a flip side – ample opportunities for work and development. In this regard, he wondered why not take advantage of this without creating problems for Armenia in the EAEU. "On the contrary, by developing within the EAEU, acquiring new opportunities, let's try to strengthen our economy through additional markets and investments from other sources. Existing opportunities should not be jeopardized; they should be used for development, expansion, and improving the well-being of our people. We have witnessed economic upheavals around the world. In my opinion, they will continue, because the causes are deep-rooted. Under these circumstances, additional major risks for small Armenia are simply unacceptable. "We must now act very calmly and with restraint, not destroying what exists, but building on it, seizing the opportunities presented by a changing world," Tsarukyan concluded.

As a reminder, on October 20, a report on the possible consequences of suspending the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union with respect to Armenia was published on the Russian government's website. The report was prepared by members of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council from Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. The 72-page report details the benefits Armenia receives from membership in the EAEU and the risks the republic would face if its membership in this integration union were suspended.