MPs from ruling parties find economic integration in Eurasian union beneficial to Armenia, opposition-minded lawmakers think otherwise

YEREVAN, November 18. /ARKA/. Naira Zohrabyan and Artak Zakaryan, MPs from Prosperous Armenia party and the Republican Party of Armenia, find the concept of economic integration in Eurasian Union attractive for Armenia.

Speaking Friday at a briefing in the National Assembly, they said that it would be beneficial for the country to join the union that implies creation of an alliance of independent countries with common political, economic, military, customs, humanitarian and cultural space by 2015.

“Cooperation within this format is economically attractive to Armenia,” Zakaryan said. “Eurasian Union can become a new format of cooperation, especially for those CIS countries which pursue interconnected economic policy and have problems in expansion of market relations. Armenia is interested in entering new markets.”

However, he added, possible format of Armenia’s cooperation with other members of the union is still unclear.

On Friday, Russian, Belarusian and Kazakh presidents signed a declaration on Eurasian economic integration, which will result in establishment of the Eurasian Economic Union.

Another agreement implying establishment of Eurasian Economic Commission, a new supranational institution for running integration process, was presented to the leaders.

Naira Zohrabyan, on her side, stressed that Armenia remained steadfast in its willingness to participate in both European and CIS integration processes.

“Every chance should be used to participate in integration processes,” she said. “Armenian government is discussing the issue of Eurasian Economic Union, and format of our interaction with this organization will be decided after the discussion.”

Unlike their fellow parliamentarians from Prosperous Armenia and the Republican Party of Armenia, Armen Martirosyan and Artsvik Minasyan, MPs from opposition Zharangutyun (heritage) and Armenian Revolutionary Federation Dashnaktsutyun parties, are skeptical about Armenia’s membership in the Eurasian Union.

“I can hardly imagine Armenia’s membership in this union, since we have no border with these countries,” Martirosyan said. “Besides, I find it unreasonable to enter into an alliance with countries having economic problems and even democracy-related problems.”

Sharing Martirosyan’s view, Artsvik Minasyan added that levels of economies’ development are various, their taxation schemes are not alike and same criteria can’t be applied to their economic structures.

Artyusha Shahbazyan, his fellow partisan, said that the idea to develop the Commonwealth of Independent States into an effective interaction and cooperation mechanism remains unsolved so far.

“Expansion of cooperation with CIS countries is beneficial to us, but time will show how realistic our membership in Eurasian Union is,” he said.-0--