Will we benefit?
“The Constitutional Court should answer the question about constitutionality, whose staff receive an enormous salary from the state budget. And once the agreement is introduced to the National Assembly, we will begin discussions and professional studies,” said PAP party spokesman Tigran Urikhanyan, in the conversation with “Aravot”, referring to Armenia’s EaEU constitutionality related issue. Note that the Constitutional Court, with its April 14 decision, approved the participatory rights of the EaEU Treaty member states, the sovereignty issues, in terms of constitutionality, do not cause problems. The Treaty will be discussed at the plenary session of the National Assembly in December, in the meantime, it will pass a phase of debates at the parliamentary sessions, also, hearings will be held, likely on November 24.
The HQ Committee would probably be the NA Standing Committee for Economic issues, though a viewpoint is circulating that HQ may be also the NA Committee for Foreign Relations. As for the EaEU membership in general, PAP MP recalls, “I’ve always said that, yes, it is an opportunity for Armenia to take the advantages regarding 800 products and to come out to the 170-millionth market. It’s another matter whether given Armenia’s realities, the state budget would benefit from it, which can double its revenues by multiple times, or separately taken people, companies and monopoly posed organizations.”
Tigran Urikhanyan considers the issue of communication very essential for our country. In particular, the Abkhaz railway sector, according to him, is an opportunity for us to reconsider it in a new way and suggesting new partner states before Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. “EaEU membership, of course, cannot be deemed as security of NKR, consequently, also from Armenia’s security perspective, as Armenia is NKR’s security guarantor,” said Tigran Urikhanyan and added that so far we have not and do not have any alternative option from any country, particularly from the European Union.
To the question of what new opportunities Armenia will acquire by this membership, our interlocutor said that given all the opportunities that are given to natural and legal entities, which were long been negotiated, in particular, in the Armenian-Russian interparliamentary Committee sessions, are fairly enough. He explained that pertaining to small and medium business, model laws, sub-legislative acts and the remaining procedures were supposed to be discussed and identified at the inter-state level, which would ensure the development of small and medium-sized businesses in the EaEU territory. However, our interlocutor considers all of these matter as subjects for discussion, whether Armenia’s reality would allow to reap results, or, as the well-known politician used to say, “we wanted to be better, but it turned as usual” option will work.
Nelly GRIGORYAN
