European Union: Armenia should not have unrealistic expectations for membership

According to the news of Armenia 's official news agency Armenpress, the Speaker of the Armenian National Assembly Alen Simonyan made a speech at the 4th meeting of the EU-Armenia Parliamentary Partnership Committee.

Simonyan argued that Armenia wants to establish relations with its neighbors on the basis of open borders and partnership, saying, “We are trying to pursue a balanced policy with regional countries and power centers based on diversification of security, economy , energy and other sectors. We are also expanding our cooperation with EU member states in wider areas.”

Co-chair of the committee, European Parliament (EP) Member Nils Usakovs, also noted that the Armenian National Assembly had approved the draft law to initiate Armenia's EU membership process, and that the EU's relations with Armenia had reached the closest level in history.

"REALISTIC TIME FRAMES COULD BE FIVE, SEVEN OR TEN YEARS"

Stating that the European Parliament has committed to further deepening ties with Armenia, Usakovs said, "It is clear that any application for EU membership will be made and evaluated according to the requirements, priorities and criteria."

On the other hand, Usakovs pointed out that Armenia should not have unrealistic expectations in the context of EU membership.

Usakovs stressed that it would be an exaggeration for any politician to say that Armenia could join the EU in a few years, adding, "This process takes years, as in Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. My country, Latvia, joined the EU after years of efforts, and Armenia will do the same. Realistic timeframes could be five, seven or ten years."

"WHILE DETERMINING ARMENIA'S MEMBERSHIP GOAL, WE CANNOT PROMISE TO GET MARRIED IMMEDIATELY WITHOUT FLIRTATION"

Hayk Mamicanyan, Chairman of the Armenian National Assembly Group "I Have Honor", stated that the EU membership process will "lead to very high expectations in Armenia, and this may become a problem for Armenia".

Committee member MEP Miriam Lexmann emphasized that membership requires a certain process, saying, "While determining Armenia's membership goal, we cannot promise to get married immediately without dating."

Lexmann noted that citizens of EU member states are now less supportive of EU expansion and aim to focus on their own problems, and said that Armenia has a lot to do to become a member of the EU.

"ARMENIA MUST LEAVE EXISTING ALLIANCES BEFORE EU ​​MEMBERSHIP"

Lithuanian Member of the European Parliament Rasa Jukneviciene, referring to the Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister Paruyr Hovhannisyan, said that Armenia should leave the current alliances before EU membership, saying, "What is your marital status? Do you still consider yourself officially married to the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU)? What is the status of your marriage with the Russian Federation? Because you cannot have a new marriage without a divorce."

Hovhannisyan responded to the question by saying, "(This) topic of marriage has been brought up many times. In this difficult world, our approach needs to be pragmatic in order to protect our national interests. In fact, we are married in different countries."

Noting that Armenia is trying to get the most out of the EU -Armenia Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA), Hovhannisyan said, "We understand that being dependent on even the closest friend (Russia) is not a good thing. When we entered the Eurasian Economic Union, there were various discussions about marital relations."