“Zhoghovurd” comments on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s instruction to the Central Bank and the Government of Russia to determine before September 1 “the future directions of integration in the monetary and financial sectors within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU)” together with the central banks of the EEU member states as well as examine the feasibility of establishing a currency union in the future. The newspaper stresses that Armenia cannot switch to a single currency with other countries unless it changes its Constitution: “But it is clear that Russia has some plans... and the option that the other EEU members – Belarus, Kazakhstan or Armenia – may have objections to further integration in the monetary sector is not even considered.”
On the possibility of Armenia’s signing a new document with the European Union “Haykakan Zhamanak” writes: “The signing of a new Armenia-EU document hinges not so much on the European Union or Armenia as on Russia. If Russia says ‘no’, [Armenian President] Serzh Sarkisian will never sign even the most innocent document. And now Armenian and EU diplomats are facing an extremely subtle task – to draft a document that Russia will not say ‘nyet’ to. But there are quite a few diplomats in Armenia who think that Russia will say ‘nyet’ in all cases regardless of what is written in the document. In that case what is the point of conducting negotiations only to become a laughing stock before the world again? Pragmatists say there is a perfect sense in doing that as in the process Armenia will manage to get some 400 million Euros from the EU.”
“Chorrord Ishkhanutyun” compares engaging in politics in Armenia to importing cooking oil or sugar: “At least this is how Serzh Sarkisian views it. His memorable expression “Do you want 10 people to import sugar in a small country like Armenia?” also applies to the political sphere. “Do you want in a small country like Armenia 10 parties to engage in political activities?” By the way, one of the demands of the opposition trio was that Sarkisian give up “political monopoly”. But instead of doing that Sarkisian dealt a powerful blow against the Prosperous Armenia Party, the key member of the trio, and even more consolidated his political monopoly. The public will feel the consequences of this political monopoly later the way that people every day feel the consequences of the monopolies on the import of sugar, vegetable oil or petrol.”
“Zhamanak” comments on the approval by the Armenian National Olympic Committee (ANOC) of Armenian athletes’ participation in the first-ever European Games to be held in Azerbaijan in June. “Thus, Armenian athletes, at least for the time being, are supposed to travel to the Azerbaijani capital of Baku for the Games which are nothing more than Azerbaijan’s international promotion like the Eurovision song contest that was held in Baku in 2012 and in which Armenia, by the way, did not take part. The decision to go to Baku has been made at the level of the ANOC and if it is not canceled at some other level, then it will be possible to say that Armenia will become a participant in the promotion of Azerbaijan on the international scale.”
(Tigran Avetisian)