An initiative group was formed, using the opportunity provided by the Constitution, to propose a civil initiative for the draft law. The Authorized Representative of the Initiative Group, Artak Zeynalyan, presenting the draft law On Launching the Accession Process of the Republic of Armenia to the European Union for debate at the extraordinary sitting of the NA Standing Committee on European Integration on January 24.
Members of the Initiative Group also attended the sitting. “52 people formed the Initiative Group, which was approved by a notary. Within the time limit set by law, the Initiative Group collected 60 thousand signatures under the law On Launching the Accession Process of the Republic of Armenia to the European Union,” Artak Zeynalyan noted, adding that the Republic of Armenia, expressing the people’s will, setting the goal of making Armenia a safe, secure, developed and prosperous country, declares the launch of the accession process of the Republic of Armenia to the European Union. Artak Zeynalyan mentioned that the authenticity of the signatures was confirmed by the RA Central Electoral Commission. The signatures were collected from the one fourth of the communities of the republic.
Presenting the substantiations, Artak Zeynalyan stated that the purpose of adopting the draft law is to affirm the will and determination of the people of Armenia and its current government to join the progressive, civilized, and developed family of humanity.
According to the rapporteur, the adoption of the law On Launching the Accession Process to the European Union will promote the establishment of peace and stability in the region by restoring the balance of power, will promote increasing the opportunities of Armenia to ensure national security, and will promote bringing the national army of the state into line with the modern standards of the armies of EU member states.
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To the conviction of the Initiative Group, the adoption of the draft law will also promote the continuous development and protection of human rights, the creation of economic security mechanisms by eliminating existing monopolies, diversifying the economy, increasing productivity and the quality of goods and services, which is possible only through cooperation with the West and the EU, ensuring access to investments and technologies, restarting industry, changing the structure of the economy and increasing the share of the real sector, creating new logistical connections, making Armenian products competitive in the European market.
The NA Expert ise and Analytical Department subjected the draft to legal, financial, economic and social expertise, issuing a conclusion noting that the regulations defined by the draft may be problematic from the perspective of legal certainty, compliance with the procedures established by the legislation for membership in supranational international organizations, and the requirements of the Law on Normative Legal Acts.
The Government submitted a proposal. It was proposed to replace the phrase ‘declares’ in the text with the phrase ‘announces,’ which was adopted.
The key rapporteur answered the MPs’ questions and gave clarifications.
The RA Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Paruyr Hovhannisyan noted that the draft, presented as a civic initiative, is in line with the dynamics of deepening cooperation between Armenia and the EU and EU member states in recent years, as well as the European aspirations of Armenian citizens. According to the Deputy Minister, it also corresponds to the commitment to developing relations with the EU and EU member states, enshrined in the Armenian Government 2021-2026 programme. According to the Deputy Minister, the EU has expressed its political support to the leadership of Armenia. In the context of Armenia-EU rapprochement, steps have been taken to realise the opportunities for deepening and expanding sectoral cooperation, and political dialogue has significantly intensified. As the co-rapporteur presented, negotiations are currently underway on a new agenda for Armenia-EU partnership. The framework of Armenia-EU cooperation has been supplemented with new directions, including security and defense. The new partnership agenda includes democracy, human rights, freedom, mobility, economic and sectoral cooperation. Armenia attaches great importance to and cooperates with the EU towards the full implementation of the Armenia-EU Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement and its roadmap.
Among the issues of primary importance, the Deputy Minister considered the deployment of the EU mission in Armenia, the launch of the Armenia-EU visa liberalisation dialogue as appreciable. It was noted that the EU will continue to be the largest donor of development cooperation in Armenia and the main supporter of the reforms being implemented. The RA Ministry of Foreign Affairs proposed to endorse the initiative on the launch of the accession process of Armenia to the EU.
Paruyr Hovhannisyan answered the MPs’ questions provided clarifications on the process. Referring to the visa liberalisation process, the Deputy Minister noted that it is difficult to predict the timing of the introduction of the system, since it has been different in different countries.
In their speeches, the participants highlighted the importance of the debate of the bill, noting that this choice is value-based, civilizational and geopolitical. The need to approve the bill was underlined. The representatives of the civil initiative, Armenia-EU civil society expressed their gratitude for the support to the process.
The Deputy Chair of the Standing Committee on European Integration Meri Galstyan noted that today the demand of 60 thousand citizens of our state is being debated in the Parliament.
According to the observation of Committee member Armen Gevorgyan, one should realise the possible developments and consequences of the decisions being made.
The Committee Chair Arman Yeghoyan, addressing the opinions expressed, mentioned that this path is the path of our foreign policy balancing.
In his final speech, Artak Zeynalyan expressed gratitude for participating in the debate, touching upon the differentiated approaches and viewpoints expressed.
The Committee members of the RA NA Armenia Faction did not participate in the voting of the draft law.
The revised draft law has been endorsed. It will be proposed to be included in the draft agenda of the upcoming NA regular sittings.
RA NA