ARMENIA’S DECISION TO JOIN THE CUSTOMS UNION BRINGS FOURTH NUMEROUS QUESTIONS ABOUT PROSPECTS OF ARMENIA’S DEVELOPMENT AND SOVEREIGNTY, KAS DIRECTOR IN SOUTH CAUCASUS THINKS

by Ashot Safaryan

Thursday, September 12, 21:44

Armenia’s decision to join the Customs Union has brought
fourth numerous questions about the prospects of Armenia’s
development and sovereignty, Dr. Canan Atilgan, Director of the
Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (Foundation) (KAS) in the South Caucasus,
said at a roundtable in Yerevan.

Canan Atilgan expressed the Foundation’s amazement at Armenian
President Serzh Sargsyan’s decision to join the Customs Union. This
was unexpected, because not a single circumstance had foretold such
a U- turn. Moreover, initialing of the Association Agreement with
the European Union in Vilnius should have been the logical end of
the negotiations.

In the meantime, Atilgan said that the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung,
like other European organizations, would continue making its own
contribution to the Armenia-EU rapprochement. She stressed that the
priorities of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung are to ensure transparency
in the governance system, to establish a strong civil society in
Armenia, as well as to stimulate the EU’s dialogue with the Armenian
public and authorities.

To note, the roundtable was organized by the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung
(KAS). The Armenian Office of the Foundation was launched in 2008. It
advocates strengthening of democracy and European integration.

From: A. Papazian