AVET ADONTS: “WE NEED TO REALIZE SUBSTANTIAL REFORMS TO START NEGOTIATIONS ON DEEP AND COMPRESSIVE FREE TRADE AREA WITH THE EU”
Mediamax
Aug 29, 2011
Armenia
The exclusive interview of Avet Adonts, Armenia’s Ambassador to the
European Union and Belgium, to Mediamax
– Philippe Lefort was appointed the European Union Special
Representative for the Southern Caucasus last week. The position was
vacant since February 28 when former EU Representative Peter Semneby’s
mandate expired. During this period EU was discussing whether or not
the position should be preserved.
– Indeed, EU was discussing the institute of Special Representatives
(they were operating not only in the Southern Caucasus) rather
actively. After the Lisbon Treaty came into force, the European
External Action Service was established to provide introduction of
more centralized mechanisms of pursuing foreign policy.
After all, taking into account the fact that there are unsettled
conflicts and interstate relations and other serious problems in the
Southern Caucasus which require the EU’s active involvement, it was
decided to preserve the institute of the Special Representative for
this region. The EU decided that the institute will allow getting
comprehensive assessments on the region.
We have discussed the issue with our European counterparts many times
and have expressed the hope that the newly appointed Representative
will act more effectively than his predecessor Peter Semneby. First of
all, we mean that the Special Representative may use all the levers
provided by the mandate to present to the EU and member-states more
objective assessments on the developments in the region.
– Armenia and the EU are holding negotiations on the Association
Agreement and both sides assess the process quite positively noting
that a half of the issues are already agreed on. What volume of work
is still to be done and what is the possible date for the completion
of the negotiations?
– I would like to specify that the Association Agreement also includes
the Deep and Compressive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) Agreement as well. A
document comprising 2 inseparable parts, political and economic,
is due to be signed.
The half of the chapters in the first part is already agreed upon
and the negotiation dynamics are rather positive. The delegations
meet in Yerevan and Brussels every 3 months. Besides, discussions
are held periodically through video conferences.
In the nearest future, we will start discussing issues related to
conflicts and security with our European counterparts and I am sure
that the positive dynamics will be maintained.
The end of the negotiations is already close but we shouldn’t forget
that implementation of the signed documents should start afterwards
and the practice shows that this phase also requires extensive work.
The negotiations on the second part of the document, DCFTA, haven’t
started yet.
– This spring, European Commissioner Stefan Fule said in his interview
to Mediamax that the negotiations will start “when Armenia is ready
for it”. What did he mean?
– The negotiations with Georgia and Moldova, other “Eastern
Partnership” members, haven’t started yet as well. By the way, the EU
doesn’t intend to conclude a DCFTA Agreement with Azerbaijan as this
country is not a member of the World Trade Organization and the WTO
membership is one of the priority conditions for starting negotiations.
To start the negotiations, a country should carry out extensive
reforms and bring its laws and procedures in line with the European
Union’s standards.
The European Commission’s special economic mission visited Armenia
and pointed out three main areas where the Armenian government should
realize reforms: protection of intellectual property, elimination of
trade barriers, spheres of phytosanitary and sanitary. The Armenian
government has recently made a decision on approving the Action Plan
aimed at resolving the indicated problems. After its realization we
will be able to claim that Armenia is ready to start the negotiations
on the DCFTA.
– So, even if the first part of the document is agreed upon by 100%
it will not be signed until the negotiations on the second part
are finished?
-Yes, there should be one joint package.
Negotiations on the DCFTA imply various reforms in our economic
policy. For instance, in the EU countries’ shops, a CD or DVD costs
at least EUR 15-20 and not EUR 2-3 as in Armenia today. Of course,
such goods can be found in the EU countries as well – not in shops
but in trade fairs or other such places.
Under such circumstances, the EU strives to equate or at least bring
the differences between economic conditions, tax and customs regimes
to the minimum. I think the negotiation process itself may take less
time than the preparatory work.
– I am sure our citizens are more interested in simplification of the
visa regime to visit the EU countries. When are these negotiations
to start?
– It’s a process which unfolds parallel to negotiations on the
Association Agreement. It aims to simplify our citizens’ entrance
to the EU countries by reducing the list of documents required by
the Embassies of the EU countries as well as the time spent on this
process. Today, we are facing a situation when a substantial part
of our citizens do not apply for EU visas at all. They realize that
they should collect numerous papers and spend much time having no
guarantee they will get a visa.
These changes will allow boosting people to people contacts.
Otherwise, the signing of the Association Agreement and DCFTA will
simply become a self-goal.
In September, the EU member states will give a mandate to the European
Commission to officially start the negotiations on the simplification
of visa regime with Armenia. I think they will last for a few months
as in fact the negotiations have already started since the Armenian
side has already realized a number of necessary reforms.
Of course, the sides’ final goal is to remove the mutual visa
requirement.
– How would you comment on “European Neighborhood Policy Review”
resolution, approved by the European Parliament on April 7, 2011, in
general, and item 49 of that document in particular, which contains an
urge to develop confidence building measures and programs and develop
“informal contacts and consultations with the societies of breakaway
territories”?
– A number of European Parliament MPs have visited Armenia and then
Nagorno Karabakh over the past year. As a result, they were declared
“persona non grata” by the Azerbaijani authorities and appeared in the
“black list” of this country.
Naturally, such situation is not acceptable for the European
Parliament and its members who need to have an opportunity to visit
non-recognized states to familiarize themselves with the situation
there, for instance, problems of human rights’ protection, i.e. one
of the priority goals of the adopted resolution is to make the MPs’
visits “legitimate”.
– The EU rather actively supported the process of settling
Armenian-Turkish relations before the signing of the Protocols in
2009. Do you think the EU has a desire and levers to make Turkey
restart the settling of relations now when the process is factually
frozen?
– Indeed, the EU was very active and it made many efforts during the
phase preceding the signing of the Protocols. I am sure that the
European Union can use its levers more efficiently in the current
situation to get the process back on the right track.