Tuesday, October 8 2019 13:50

ArmInfo.Even after the "velvet revolution" in Armenia, relations between the republic and the United States remain in a stagnant state, foreign policy specialist, Senior  Associate Fellow at the Insitute for Statecraft at Leicester Eduard  Abrahamyan expressed a similar opinion to ArmInfo.

It should be noted that, according to the press service of the  President of Armenia, today on October 8, Eduard Abrahamyan was  appointed new assistant to the President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian.

"The visits of the US President's National Security Advisor, John  Bolton, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State George Kent to  Yerevan, raised these relations to the level of "strategic dialogue.  "However, at the same time, because of the participation of the  Armenian Armed Forces in the humanitarian mission in Syria, the  contacts with the United States have reached a historical law. And  this is happening against the backdrop of the development of  cooperation between the United States and other countries of the  South Caucasus," he said.

According to the analyst, Nikol Pashinyan's government continues the  course set by the predecessors on servicing the international agenda  of Russia. And this significantly limits Yerevan's opportunities for  making sovereign decisions, increasing its sensitivity to Kremlin's  influence and leaving little room for a sober and critical assessment  of dynamics of regional and global politics. As a result new Armenia  in its external policy is still focused on promotion of the EAEU  project, rather than on changing the imperatives of national policy.

According to Abrahamyan, the American voyage in July by Ararat  Mirzoyan ,the Speaker of the Parliament of Armenia, added ambiguity  in the relations between the two countries. The Armenian delegation,  which arrived in Washington without a portfolio of proposals to  intensify relations, expressed disappointment that Washington did not  appreciate the importance of building democratic institutions in  Armenia and did not realize that Armenia needs to develop relations  with Iran.

According to the analyst, the situation is aggravated by a  misunderstanding of the situation caused by insufficient experience  of some senior representatives of the post-revolutionary elite in  Armenia. The terminology and arguments of the latter indicate a poor  understanding of Washington's regional intentions and global  strategy. One gets the impression that the Armenian Foreign Ministry  has not made enough efforts to inform other representatives of the  government or parliament about real problems in cooperation with the  United States.

According to Abrahamyan, meanwhile, instead of complaining about  Washington's indifference to Armenia's internal political  achievements, Yerevan should strive to give substance to the  "strategic dialogue" with the US, thereby increasing the importance  of Armenia for the Trump administration.  Yerevan may well take steps  to mitigate the consequences of a number of its own actions taken as  a result of misunderstandings in 2019.  One of such steps, according  to Abrahamyan, would be the withdrawal of the Armenian military from  the territory of Syria, which will be a key step on the way to  returning relations with Washington in a positive direction. At the  same time, in order to mitigate the reaction of Moscow, Yerevan may  promise to refuse to participate in other peacekeeping missions.  According to the analyst, the constructive participation of Yerevan  in the dialogue on European energy security will also significantly  contribute to improving relations with the United States. Armenia  should strive to become the most important security guarantor of a  vital energy infrastructure, and not a potential threat, regardless  of the conflict with Azerbaijan. Armenia may also offer the United  States its own logistics infrastructure aimed at increasing the  West-East communications potential.

"It is clear that the realization of all these prospects will require  strong political will, professional, diplomatic and political skills  from the Armenian leadership. As soon as the Pashinyan's government  realizes the possibility of deepening ties with the United States in  accordance with its own strategic choice, developing a clear concept  of relations with the United States and Russia will become a  necessity on the basis of clear red lines drawn by Yerevan. Armenia  should strive to change relations with the United States, turning  from an applicant to an American help to a regional provider of  network security, able to take on the corresponding functions  "Abrahamyan concluded.