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Armenia Turns To The East

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  • Armenia Turns To The East

    ARMENIA TURNS TO THE EAST

    Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
    Oct 1 2013

    1 October 2013 - 1:37pm

    Susanna Petrosyan, Yerevan. Exclusively to Vestnik Kavkaza

    The foreign policy of Armenia has been turned exclusively to the
    West in recent years. Among the five states of Central Asia, Armenia
    has embassies only in Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. Meanwhile, in the
    Benelux, Armenia has embassies both in Belgium and the Netherlands.

    In the context of providing a more balanced policy between the West
    and the East, the statement by President Serge Sargsyan addressed the
    leaders of the CSTO on supporting Armenia in the question of becoming
    an observer in the SCO is interesting. The status of an observer in
    the SCO will enable Armenia to develop economic relations with an
    organization which is focused on economic cooperation. Potentially
    Armenia is interested not only in the Russian market, but also the
    Chinese. Yerevan is unlikely to be a member of the SCO someday,
    but the status of an observer in the organization brings it toward
    the East. The step would be accepted positively by China and Iran,
    which has the status of an observer.

    Analyzing the results of the Sochi summit in the CSTO, some experts
    draw the conclusion that Armenia stays aside from the discussion of
    improvement of the Tajik-Afghan border. The conclusions can be called
    hasty. The experts believe that relations with the CSTO and the CIS
    are important only from the point of view of the Armenian-Russian
    relations. It is not so. When the NATO forces will be withdrawn
    from Afghanistan, the threat for Central Asia will grow and it will
    influence Armenia.

    First of all, the South Caucasus and Central Asia are two
    geopolitically connected regions. If radical Islam penetrates to the
    countries of Central Asia, there is a danger of its penetration to the
    region of the South Caucasus. Along with terrorism, it requires many
    various parameters. including the fact that Afghan militants can come
    to the zone of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Secondly, all countries
    of Central Asia have Armenian Diasporas. In Uzbekistan the Diaspora
    is large, in Kyrgyzstan it is small, but it doesn't mean the problem
    of security of the Armenians is not acute for Yerevan. The situation
    which would be similar to the situation over Syrian compatriots should
    be prevented. The CSTO has political, military, economic opportunities
    for this, which could be used by Armenia and its allies someday.

    Some Armenian media report that the sending of troops to Central Asia
    by Armenia is absolutely impossible. However, Armenia sent its troops
    to Afghanistan and Iraq. It can send them to the region of Central
    Asia, if it is necessary because security interests of the countries
    have much more common with interests of Yerevan than interests of
    Afghanistan and Iraq.

    http://vestnikkavkaza.net/articles/politics/45758.html

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