09/07/2014 19:05
Serzh Sargsyan: Today we and Turkey have nothing to talk about
During his official visit to Argentina, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan met with leading journalists of the local mass media. Below is an abridged version of the article by Telam, the correspondent of América economía, about his meeting with the Armenian president and S. Sargsyan’s interview.
“Today we and Turkey have nothing to talk about. For a long time, we conducted negotiations over signing the protocols, but the Turkish parliament did not ratify them. So what shall we talk about?” the article quotes Serzh Sargsyan as saying.
At the end of an eventful day involving a ceremony in San Martin Square, meetings with Argentina’s Vice President Amado Boudou and several ministers, and a meeting with Buenos Aires Mayor Mauricio Macri, the Armenian president received Telam and representatives of two other Argentine media outlets at a hotel in Buenos Aires.
The author says that without a tie and a suit and speaking in a quiet voice, the Armenian president did not resemble the image of a military hero – the one known to many in Armenia. “Twenty years ago Serzh Sargsyan was one of the Armenian military commanders during the war with Azerbaijan. The conflict led to the creation of an Armenian state – unrecognized at the international level – in Nagorno Karabakh which Serzh Sargsyan said plays a significant role in the defense and security of Armenia.
Far from military dramatic effects and radical approaches of a military life, the 60-year-old Armenian leader who has served as president for over 6 years avoids making resounding statements. Showing restraint, the president stresses once again that Armenia chooses neither Russia nor Europe. “We choose both,” Serzh Sargsyan says smiling.
The author reminds the reader that in 2013 Armenia started the process of joining the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), an integration economic union set up by Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus.
“S. Sargsyan explains he does not want ‘to reduce the level of relations with the EU or to sever relations”, but he just took a decision, “based on a simple economic calculation”.
“Armenia and Russia have for decades had strong relations that cannot be broken off,” the president notes.
In his words, it is impossible for Armenia to export to the EU the same farm products and goods which are now exported to Russia at competitive prices,” the article author says.
In the interview with América economía, President Sargsyan said that Armenia receives natural gas from Russia and Iran, while Moscow gives a 30% discount to Customs Union member states.
The Armenian president notes that for a small country with a population of 3 million, its geographic position is not the only problem. Armenia’s western border with Turkey and eastern border with Azerbaijan have been closed for over two decades. The narrow border with Iran in the south is open and so is Armenia’s northern broader border with Georgia, a country that plans to join NATO and recently signed an Association Agreement with the EU.
“We will continue negotiations with Europeans in a format that will not hinder Armenia’s integration into the Customs Union,” Serzh Sargsyan said in conclusion.