Thursday,
Pashinian Meets French President On First Trip To Europe As PM
Belgium - French President Emmanuel Macron (R) and Armenian Prime Minister
Nikol Pashinian meet at the NATO headquarters in Brussels, .
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian emphasized the “privileged” character of
Armenia’s relationship with France when he met with French President Emmanuel
Macron in Brussels late on Wednesday.
Joined by their foreign ministers, the two men held talks on the sidelines of a
NATO summit in the Belgian capital. Pashinian was due to attend a session of
the summit focused on the ongoing NATO-led mission in Afghanistan. The
multinational military contingent deployed there includes 130 or so Armenian
soldiers.
Macron and Pashinian exchanged warm greetings in English at the start of the
meeting held at the NATO headquarters in Brussels. The French president could
be heard saying in front of TV cameras that he is “very happy to see” the
Armenian premier.
An Armenian government statement cited Pashinian as saying that “Armenia highly
appreciates its privileged relations with France based on traditional
friendship and mutual respect of the two peoples.”
For his part, Macron was reported to say that France is ready to deepen
economic and political ties with Armenia. He also said he looks forward to
paying a state visit to Yerevan in October.
The visit will be timed to coincide with a summit of Francophonie, a grouping
of over 70 mainly French-speaking nations, which will be held in the Armenian
capital.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian visited Yerevan in late May to
discuss with Armenia’s new government preparations for the summit. Le Drian
stressed the fact that he is the first high-level foreign official to arrive in
the South Caucasus state since a popular uprising that swept Pashinian to power
earlier in May.
Macron was likewise the first Western leader to meet Pashinian during the
latter’s first-ever trip to Europe in his current capacity.
According to the government statement, the two leaders also discussed the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, with Pashinian praising international efforts to
resolve it which have long been spearheaded by the United States, Russia and
France. Pashinian also warned against Azerbaijani attempts to solve the
conflict militarily. No other details were reported.
Armenian, Azeri FMs In First Talks On Karabakh (UPDATED)
Belgium - The foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan and the OSCE Minsk
Group Co-Chairs meet in Brussels,.
Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanian and his Azerbaijani counterpart Elmar
Mammadyarov met for the first time late on Wednesday to discuss ways of
reviving the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process.
The four-hour talks in Brussels began in the presence of the U.S., Russian and
French mediators co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group.
“The meeting had an introductory character and was intended for familiarizing
with each other’s views,” the Armenian Foreign Ministry said in a statement
released the following morning.
It said Mnatsakanian stressed the importance of respecting the ceasefire regime
in the Karabakh conflict zone, creating an “atmosphere conducive to peace” and
avoiding “aggressive rhetoric.”
“The co-chairs briefed the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers on their
upcoming plans. Further steps were discussed,” the statement added without
elaborating.
According to the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, Mammadyarov and Mnatsakanian
discussed the stalled peace process “in detail.” The APA news agency quoted a
ministry spokesman, Hikmet Hajiyev, saying that the sides agreed on the need to
“continue negotiations in the existing format.” The ministers also “exchanged
views on steps taken for the purpose of advancing the peace process,” he said.
The mediators reported, for their part, that the two ministers considered “a
range of possible confidence-building measures” at their first meeting. “The
Co-Chairs stressed the importance of reducing tensions and avoiding
inflammatory rhetoric,” they said in a joint statement issued on Thursday.
“The Ministers agreed to meet again in the near future under the auspices of
the Co-Chairs,” added the statement.
Armenia’s former President Serzh Sarkisian and Azerbaijani President Ilham
Aliyev pledged a renewed push for a Karabakh peace at their last face-to-face
meeting held in Geneva in October 2017. Their foreign ministers held what they
described as “positive” follow-up talks in December and January. The mediators
said in February that the two sides have pledged to “continue intensive
negotiations” after forthcoming electoral processes in Azerbaijan and Armenia.
Aliyev was subsequently reelected for another term in office, while Sarkisian
was forced to resign amid mass protests in Armenia against his continued rule.
Baku Scared Of Armenian Democracy, Says Pashinian
• Harry Tamrazian
• Artur Papyan
BELGIUM -- Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian arrives for the second day
of the NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) summit, in Brussels, on July
12, 2018.
The Azerbaijani leadership is ratcheting up tension in the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict to prevent democratic change in Armenia from spreading to Azerbaijan,
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian claimed on Thursday.
“Unfortunately, following the advance of democracy and the democratic
revolution in Armenia Azerbaijan has become more aggressive and this aggression
is directed not only at Armenia but also democracy in our region,” he told
reporters during a visit to Brussels.
Pashinian made a similar point at an ensuing meeting with Latvia’s President
Raimonds Vejonis held on the sidelines of a NATO summit in the Belgian
capital.“Unfortunately, I saw rising tensions on Nagorno-Karabakh’s borders and
along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border immediately after taking over as prime
minister,” he said. “I want to stress that any Azerbaijani attack on Armenia
would also be an attack on democracy.
“I think that Azerbaijan’s president has certain concerns that democratic
processes could spread from Armenia to Azerbaijan, and as far as I understand,
they are trying to heighten tensions in order to prevent the democratic wave
from moving from Armenia to Azerbaijan.”
“I hope that the international community will send a very strong signal to Baku
to the effect that any attempt to escalate the situation in the region, any
attempt to start a war would meet with a strong reaction from the international
community,” added the Armenian premier.
The Armenian military started accusing Baku of massing troops along “the line
of contact” around Karabakh shortly before mass protests led by Pashinian
forced Armenia’s former President Serzh Sarkisian to resign in late April. It
says that the buildup continued after Pashinian was elected prime minister in
early May. The Azerbaijani side has denied that.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev renewed his threats to forcibly win back
control over Karabakh when he addressed a military parade in Baku on June 26.
“The war is not over. Only its first phase has ended,” he said, threatening
military strikes against “strategic” Armenian targets.
The Azerbaijani army held major exercises the following week.
On Wednesday, an Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesman condemned Pashinian for
approving and promoting his 18-year-old son’s decision to perform compulsory
military service in Karabakh. The official, Hikmet Hajiyev, said Pashinian is
thus trying to keep his approval ratings high at the expense of regional peace.
Former Ruling Party ‘Unlikely’ To Name New Yerevan Mayor
• Anush Muradian
Armenia - A session of Yerevan's municipal council chaired by Mayor Taron
Markarian, 26Dec2017.
A senior member of former President Serzh Sarkisian’s Republican Party of
Armenia (HHK) said on Thursday that it is unlikely to nominate a new mayor of
Yerevan who can be elected by the HHK-controlled municipal council.
The previous, Republican mayor, Taron Markarian, resigned on Monday under
pressure from the new Armenian government and its political allies.
Under Armenian law, the city council has to elect a new mayor within a month.
Failure to do so would give the central government the right to disband the
legislature and hold snap elections in the capital. This is the preferred
scenario of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s Yelk alliance.
The 63-seat council scheduled a vote on the mayor for July 16. The HHK, which
holds 46 seats there, Yelk and the third political group represented in the
council, the Yerkir Tsirani party, have not yet named candidates for the vacant
post.
“We don’t yet have a candidate,” said Sergey Mkrtchian, the leader of the HHK
faction in the council. “That issue hasn’t been discussed. But I think that we
will probably not [field a mayoral candidate.]”
“But that is my opinion. We will hold a faction meeting and see,” he added.
The HHK’s possible decision not to seek to replace Markarian by another party
member on July 16 would most probably require the conduct of municipal
elections in early September. Accordingly, campaigning for them would start in
August, a traditional period of summer holidays and political calm in Armenia.
Yelk wants the polls to be held a few weeks later. Its top Yerevan councilor,
Davit Khazhakian, argued that political forces need more time to prepare for
the mayoral race. He said the council should therefore meet and vote on the
next mayor on August 8.
EU Reaffirms Support For New Armenian Government’s Reform Agenda
Belgium - European Council President Donald Tusk (R) meets with Armenian Prime
Minister Nikol Pashinian in Brussels, .
The two top European Union officials met with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian in
Brussels on Thursday, reaffirming the EU’s readiness to help Armenia’s new
government implement sweeping reforms promised by it.
Donald Tusk, president of the European Council, and Jean-Claude Juncker, the
European Commission president, held separate talks with him on the sidelines of
a NATO summit. Pashinian’s press office said they both praised the recent
democratic change of Armenia’s government.
“What happened in Armenia was special and, I would say, very European,” it
quoted Tusk as saying of the mass protests that brought Pashinian to power in
May. “Your example is very promising and you can count on EU assistance in
implementing reforms.”
“First, good meeting with PM Pashinian to discuss EU-Armenia relations,” Tusk
tweeted after the meeting.
Pashinian assured Tusk and Juncker that his cabinet is committed to
democratizing Armenia’s political system, strengthening the rule of law and
combatting corruption. “One of the main priorities of our government is to
continue the fight against corruption in Armenia launched about two months
ago,” he told Juncker.
Belgium - President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker and
Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian meet in Brussels,12Jul2018
The Armenian premier also met with the EU foreign policy chief, Federica
Mogherini, late on Wednesday.
“The two discussed the new Armenian government's clear commitment to reform and
the concrete action already taken to this end,” said a spokeswoman for
Mogherini, Maja Kocijancic. Mogherini reiterated that the EU stands ready to
“provide concrete support to reforms, including through technical and financial
assistance,” she said.
Mogherini similarly voiced “full support” for the Pashinian government’s “very
ambitious” reform agenda after holding talks with Armenian Foreign Minister
Zohrab Mnatsakanian late last month.
The EU is due to provide 160 million euros ($185 million) in assistance to
Armenia over the next four years in accordance with the Comprehensive and
Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) signed with the previous Armenian
government last November. EU officials have not said whether it could increase
that aid allocation to support to the new authorities in Yerevan.
Speaking to reporters at the end of his two-day visit to Brussels, Pashinian
complained that the EU has still not promised extra aid to his government. He
said he “expressed bewilderment” at this fact in his first talks with EU
leaders.
“In essence, after the revolution there were very warm statements [of support
for the new Armenian leadership,] but there has been no policy change,” he
said. “Frankly, I made it clear to our partners that this is not quite
understandable and acceptable. But then again, we are not acting like
solicitors. It’s up to them to decide what policies to pursue.”
“We specifically expect more concrete and greater assistance,” stressed the
premier.
Press Review
“Zhamanak” describes the first day of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s visit to
Brussels as “quite productive,” pointing to his meetings with French President
Emmanuel Macron and the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Federica
Mogherini. The paper says Pashinian will also tell other European leaders that
Armenia is a “reliable partner” of both the EU and NATO.
“This is the first visit to Europe by the leader of post-revolution Armenia and
it is certainly important,” writes “Aravot.” “Neither this nor the previous
government of Armenia has said that it is pro-European, pro-Russian or
pro-American and that is right … Being at odds with some [major] country or
structure would be fraught with the same danger.” The paper goes on to urge the
current government and major Armenian political forces to clearly explain “what
value system they stand for.” “On this issue they can’t say ‘I espouse Armenian
values,’” it says. “That would mean credible elections, freedom of speech, the
rule of law, separation of government branches are purely Armenian values.”
“Zhoghovurd” writes about confusion surrounding amendments to Armenia’s
Electoral Code sought by the new government and virtually all major parties.
The paper says that two task forces set up by the government and the parliament
are now separately working on such amendments. It sees growing differences
between these two teams, saying that both the government and the parliament are
to blame for that. In particular, it says, Nikol Pashinian and his allies must
stop snubbing the former ruling HHK over the electoral reform not least because
it still has the largest faction in the parliament.
Interviewed by “168 Zham,” a Russian pundit, Modest Kolerov, says Pashinian’s
and Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanian’s statements on the Karabakh conflict
contradict each other. “We will comment on such issues only when Armenia stops
contradicting itself, when the foreign minister stops denying what his boss,
the prime minister has said,” he tells the paper.
(Tigran Avetisian)
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
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