The Constitutional Court of Armenia declared that the treaty on Russian military base presence in Armenia has legal power. Amendments introduced into the treaty in 2010 implicate the extension of the treaty terms for 49 years. Expert Ruben Safrastyan tells VK about significance and prospects of this treaty.
- How would you comment on the prolongation of the treaty?
- I think it is a positive factor if we take current geo-political status of the South Caucasus into consideration. It introduces some degree of stability into our troubled region.
- Do you concur with the opinion that this treaty violates sovereignty of Armenia?
- No, I don't. I think it insures safety of Armenian borders, as Russia is one of the major and respected powers in our region. Moreover, Armenia is a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation as receives grater guaranties as such with Russian base on our territory that without it.
- You mean that bilateral cooperation with Russia affects positively Armenian cooperation with the CSTO?
- Yes, and it rises the authority of Armenia. Russian military base increases geo-political weight of Armenia. Thanks to this base, we have an advantage in the security field over our neighbors, Azerbaijan and Georgia.
- You showed us positive aspects. And what are the risks?
- I don't see any risks at all.
- Some experts estimate that there are no other possible partners for Armenia in the security field. Do you concur?
- Armenian security is sustained by several factors: first of all, its cooperation with CSTO, second of all, Russian base and our cooperation with Russia in general. But cooperation with NATO and USA is among these factors as well. Nevertheless, the scale of our cooperation with Russia and CSTO is much grater, so yes, there are yet no alternatives.
- Is it possible that positive development in relations with Turkey will make this Russian base less necessary?
- I don't think so. We are not talking good-neighborly relations or cooperation with Turkey. We only hope to re-establish formal diplomatic relations. So there are no guarantees. And we can observe now how two NATO members - Turkey and Greece - were on the verge of war for many times now. Turkey has occupied a part of Cyprus - a state-member of the EU - the alliance Turkey aspires to join.
Interview by Susanna Petrosyan, Yerevan. Exclusively for VK
