Representatives from 14 countries, including Armenia, who took part in the session of the Executive Board for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons Organization on the “Skripal case”, joined the statement made by Russia, which stressed the need to “make sure that the problem will be solved within the legal framework”.
Russia demands to examine the issue from the perspective of the Convention on the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. It seems that in this case, there is no illegal or illogical thing in Russians’ demand. However, Russia has become a minority in the organization: Belarus, Syria, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Venezuela, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Nicaragua, and Cuba expressed their solidarity with it. Again, as they say, we are in “the wrong crowd”. Of course, it is desirable that our interests coincide more often with more developed countries.
But this is not the case of Ukraine when developed countries in the UN condemned Russia’s policy towards that country, and a number of countries, including us, did not. In the case of Ukraine, condemning would be the right step, but Armenia supported Russia to please its “strategic ally”. The “Skripal case” is not unequivocal, and if the British side is confident that its accusations are proven and legally invulnerable, then the international investigation would only strengthen that confidence. But Britain and its allies, leaving the legal dimension behind, have resorted to a pure political rhetoric, and here it is possible to say anything: politics is not an exact science.
What I mean is that dogmatic approaches are wrong both in this and in all other cases. Is Russia wrong in all cases? This approach is a sign of a limited mindset. It is a bit similar to the approach of oppositional figures, according to which the government is wrong in all matters, and when the representative of the government says that it is not allowed to throw litter on the pavement, it is necessary to propagate throwing litter on the pavement.
I think one should have principle and stick with it, rather than choosing a “beloved” one and support him/her no matter what s/he does. So, in this case, Armenia has taken the right step. That also happens.
Aram ABRAHAMYAN
