Political scientist on Armenia`s relations with EU: For official  Yerevan, security is paramount

ArmInfo. For official Yerevan, security is paramount. This is what political scientist Alexander Iskandaryan, director of the Caucasus Institute, writes in his article, discussing the upcoming summit of the European Political  Community and the first Armenia-EU summit.

According to Iskandaryan, security means that official Yerevan is  trying to view the country as European.  Armenia has even adopted a  law stipulating that it will seek to develop relations with the  European Union.  However, as the political scientist noted, the  interests of Armenia's neighbors, which act as a single entity,  should not be discounted. "We have Turkey, Iran, Azerbaijan, and  Georgia as neighbors. And all four neighbors are quite problematic  for us, as Georgia has rather complicated relations with both Europe  and Russia. As for Iran, it's clear that Tehran's relations with the  West are currently quite complicated. It's also quite clear that  Turkey and Azerbaijan have quite a few problems in their relations  with us. Moreover, the opposite could also happen, because we also  have problems in our relations with Azerbaijan and Turkey.  The  situation is complex, and in such a context, it's understandable that  Europe, with representatives from approximately 40 countries, could  point out the existence of a problem," noted Alexander Iskandaryan.

He added that Armenia could, of course, try to resolve these issues  not with Kalashnikov rifles, but at the negotiating table. "The  upcoming summit is a form of support for Armenia from the EU, but I  don't think it will have a significant impact, as the problems are  truly quite serious. Europe can simply demonstrate support, which  will help create the necessary atmosphere. But that's easy to say,  because if you're not interested in politics, politics will become  interested in you. It's quite simple. If we want to continue  cooperation with Europe, and if we want this process of developing  relations with it to continue, if we want to travel to Europe  visa-free, if we want European norms to come to Armenia, if we want  Armenia to cooperate with European countries, then we ourselves  should be primarily interested in this, because it benefits us all,"  the political scientist noted.

Nevertheless, the political scientist believes it's unlikely to  change the entire process. "The summit will show how it's developing,  how so-called diversification is taking place, and how the European  Union supports Armenia in this process, which is quite important,"  the political scientist emphasized.  As a reminder, the European  Political Community summit will be held in Yerevan on May 4. The  first high-level Armenia-European Union meeting will take place in  parallel. High-level delegations from 40 countries are expected to  participate.