Changing their orientation: why Armenia joined the European Union
In Armenia, consideration of the issue of the country's European integration has reached the finish line. The deputies of the relevant commission approved the relevant bill, and now the final reading will be held in parliament by the end of March. Izvestia investigated the situation.
Deputies argued about European integration
The relevant commission of the Armenian Parliament has approved a bill on the country's accession to the European Union. During the discussion, several significant changes were made to the document. Thus, the term "integration" was deleted from the draft, and the preamble now refers to the "start of the membership process." In addition, there was no mention of the united will of the Armenian people, but there were theses about the country's desire to develop democratic institutions, improve well-being and strengthen security.
During the discussion, lively disputes broke out in the commission. One of the questions was whether there was any reaction from the European Union to the bill. Deputy Foreign Minister Paruyr Hovhannisyan said that Brussels was allegedly waiting for the final approval of the document, and only then would it be evaluated. "I am well acquainted with the EU's working style, they never wait for the second or third reading. They either immediately react positively or they don't react at all," said opposition MP Armen Gevorgyan.
Several other parliamentarians were surprised by the idea that rapprochement with the European Union would help strengthen the country's security. According to them, the EU is not a defense organization, the Europeans solve this issue within the framework of NATO. In response, one of the authors of the bill, Artak Zeynalyan, said that in case of rapprochement with the EU, Armenia would allegedly become "part of the European security system." "This is a multi-component issue. It's not just about the armed forces or defense, but also about the economy, democracy and institutions," he said.
In turn, Deputy Foreign Minister Paruyr Hovhannisyan said that Yerevan and Brussels have already established a number of contacts. According to him, the parties held two discussions on foreign policy and defense issues, and Armenia also applied for participation in the European Peace Instrument program. Finally, a mission of euro-observers is operating on the border of Armenia and Azerbaijan. "The EU is becoming an important security partner," he concluded.
The opposition MPs were very surprised by these answers, some of them noted that the European Union is not up to the Armenian problems now. Others recalled that just a few days ago, Nikol Pashinyan promised to curtail the mission of Euro-observers after signing a peace treaty with Baku. Nevertheless, the majority of the audience approved the document, and now the bill will be considered in the final reading at a meeting of the Armenian parliament. The vote is expected to take place between March 25 and March 29, after which a general referendum may be called.
Russia warns of consequences
Armenia questioned its traditional foreign policy orientation towards Russia after the loss of Karabakh in 2023. Yerevan then accused Moscow of not helping to defend the region and not hindering Azerbaijan's offensive operations. The Russian side has consistently stressed that the peacekeepers in Karabakh acted in accordance with their mandate, and Armenia refused the CSTO services itself when it decided not to deploy the organization's mission on its territory.
Against this background, relations between Moscow and Yerevan have experienced a period of acute cooling. Thus, the parties agreed on the withdrawal of Russian border guards from Zvartnots airport, as well as from the Armenian-Iranian border and from the Margara checkpoint on the Armenian-Turkish border. In addition, the Transcaucasian republic announced the freezing of its participation in the CSTO, stopped accepting Russian Mir payment cards, refused to broadcast a number of Russian TV shows and threatened to block entire TV channels.
Granada. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, European Council President Charles Michel, French President Emmanuel Macron (from left to right) during a meeting on the sidelines of the European Political Community summit
At the same time, Armenia began to move closer to the European Union. The autumn of 2023 became a landmark in this sense, when Nikol Pashinyan attended two major European events. First, at the summit in Granada, Spain, he met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. After the talks, the politicians stated that Armenia and the EU "stand shoulder to shoulder." Then, at a meeting of the European Parliament, the Armenian Prime Minister said that Yerevan was ready to get as close as possible to the European union.
Substantive talks on European integration began in the spring of 2024. At that time, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said that the republic's leadership was actively discussing the issue of possible membership. "Considering all the challenges that we have had to face over the past three or four years, new opportunities are being discussed in Armenia. I won't reveal a secret if I say that there is also the idea of joining the EU in this series. Let's see what the outcome will be," he said.
At the same time, the European Parliament adopted a resolution allowing the Transcaucasian republic to be granted the status of a candidate country. After that, several Armenian NGOs and NGOs set up an initiative group and began collecting signatures for a petition demanding a referendum on European integration in the country. As a result, 60 thousand people expressed their support for the document, after which the issue was discussed in the government and sent to parliament for consideration. In early February of this year, the deputies approved the relevant bill in the first reading.
Russia has repeatedly warned that Armenia will not be able to be a member of the EAEU and the EU at the same time. "It is difficult to say what this EU membership means at the moment, because, of course, it is simply impossible to be members of two different organizations, hypothetically speaking. There is one customs space here, there is one zone of free movement of goods, services, people, capital, there is another, there are other norms," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Alexey Overchuk, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, stressed that a break with the EAEU would have serious consequences for Yerevan. According to him, in this case, Armenia faces rising food and electricity prices, a 70-80% reduction in exports, depopulation and rising unemployment. "Membership in the EAEU is a privilege, and given the economic and social problems facing the European Union, joining the EU can be compared to buying a ticket to the Titanic," he noted.
What the experts say
Armenian political analyst Arshaluys Mgdesyan believes that the law on European integration will be adopted in the near future.
— I believe that in this case we are not talking about Armenia's real accession to the EU. So far, such a prospect is not visible at all, there are many internal conflicts in the West, the US administration is in a tough clinch with Brussels, they are definitely not up to Armenia right now. Therefore, I think that in this case we are talking exclusively about the internal political struggle. The fact is that parliamentary elections will be held in Armenia next year. The ruling team believes that a pro—Western agenda will add points to it, so it will periodically create relevant information channels," he explains.
Vladimir Novikov, head of the Caucasus Department at the Institute of CIS Countries, says it is beneficial for Pashinyan to present what is happening as a grassroots initiative that the authorities simply cannot ignore.
— In fact, there is a political calculation here — the rating of the ruling party is now minimal, due to such initiatives they want to attract the pro-European electorate to their side, while trying not to alienate pro-Russian voters. We know the official position of Yerevan, which states that membership in the EAEU allegedly does not contradict the desire to join the EU. In fact, it is obvious that there is a contradiction, but in Yerevan they prefer not to notice it," he says.
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