“168 Hours’” guest is the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, Irakli Menagarishvili.
– How do you imagine Armenia-EU relations after the verification of the agreement?
– I think verification operations will prolong until a year and a half. That is, in the forthcoming period the verification will stand on the agenda of Armenia-EU relations, after which the parties will pass to the provisions stipulated in the declaration of EaP summit referring to until 2020 time frame overall.
– And what can you say about visa-free regime?
– The negotiations on setting up visa-free system take a long time usually, this field requires serious reforms as well. In case of Armenia, I cannot tell for sure how much the EU is ready to open its borders via visa-free regime. The process of the negotiations on this issue will show. The visa-free regime was a difficult achievement for the associated countries as well. Not an easy path is waiting for Armenia, Europe is rather strict as regards setting up visa-free regime currently, which is understandable, taking into consideration the culmination of migration crisis in the recent years connected with the Syrian conflict. For not completely reformed countries making visa regime easier becomes a big kick, inasmuch as a lot of people leave the country. It partly took place also in Georgia after the installation of the visa-free regime. Therefore, I would not advise you to hurry. The realization of the agreement signed in days is far more important, which will mean a lot to Armenia-EU relations.
Araks MARTIROSYAN
