The statement made by Serzh Sargsyan about a year ago pertaining to refusal to sign the EU Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement and joining Russia’s obvious imperialistic and Eurasian integration initiatives was initially problematic. The statement made on behalf of Armenia by a president having an enormous deficit of legitimacy had no substantiations and rationale. The matter was not discussed in a competent government body, the entire civil society in Armenia was unaware of it, and his party team members were also unaware of the decision of their party-leader.
The absence of a common border with newly integrated partner-countries, the apparent disharmony of Armenia with their economic models and non-democratic and regressive nature of the political systems and leadership thereof unequivocally ruled out any expectations of further progress for Armenia. The statement was made in the capital of a foreign country, after the closed-door meeting with the President of Russia, and hitherto the nature of this talk and what arsenal of arguments Mr. Putin used to extract such a drastic breakthrough from Serzh Sargsyan is unknown. The drastic breakthrough could not but have a negative impact on Armenia’s relations with the EU, it would definitely cause damage to Armenia’s as a reliable partner reputation, and it would weaken the position of Armenia in the context of Artsakh conflict.
During the past one year, Serzh Sargsyan’s regime could not give logical explanations to the public about the change of his course. Moreover, if the remarks voiced from the camp of the regime are true that in the event of failure to doing so, Artsakh would encounter a real danger, then it must be concluded that we are dealing with nothing more but simply blackmail and intimidations by the “strategic partner”. We do not also rule out that there were threats and blackmail not to Armenia but personally to Serzh Sargsyan. I have no doubt that the Kremlin has sufficient information about the component of corrupted activities by Serzh Sargsyan’s clan. Although the strong aspiration and unserious reaching haste in this matter by the Kremlin and Serzh Sargsyan, over the past one year, fortunately, was delayed for various reasons, and Armenia’s accession first to the Customs Union and afterwards its substituting body, the Eurasian Union, failed for occurring.
Simultaneously, in the past period, crucial geopolitical changes took place. In the result of annexation of Crimea and invasion to the south-east of Ukraine, Russia rightfully is returned to the rank of rejected and outcast countries in the world. Shamelessly ignoring its own commitments, grossly violating the international law, becoming an immediate threat to neighboring states, Russia was exiled from the world’s most powerful countries’ informal club, G8, and became the target of devastating economic sanctions by these countries. Essentially, the “cold war” resumes. On the other hand, the developments in our region showed that there is no and cannot be a new guarantee for the security of Armenia and Artsakh, in the result of affiliation to the Eurasian Union as purely economic union.
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Moreover, it was apparent that at least two of currently three members of the Eurasian Union, which together with us are members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, are inclined to undermine the interests of our country to the interests of another country, our rival. As for Russia’s blackmail hinted by the regime with regard to Artsakh, then, I am deeply convinced that under this geopolitical situation, it is very easy to resist this alleged blackmail by very civilized political and diplomatic moves. In this situation, if not as a state treason, then as an unserious culmination and blatant irresponsibility, we can estimate Serzh Sargsyan’s ongoing and persistent efforts for Armenia’s accession to the Eurasian Union a day before.
Based on the aforesaid, for the last time I call on giving up with the regime, and if it is beyond their power, at least to postpone Armenia’s accession to the Eurasian Union for at least one year. In the event of failure to find other options, I can suggest Serzh Sargsyan’s resignation as a very successful and effective option and hold extraordinary presidential elections. It is also necessary that Armenia’s civil society, political parties and NGOs have a distinct position on this serious matter of Armenia’s sovereignty and future destiny, and exert systematic and resisting pressure against the adventurous activities of the regime.
KARAPET RUBINYAN