Artak Zakaryan: If Armenia is involved in war, all projects in region will be thwarted (video)
During his stay in Yerevan, Speaker of the Russian State Duma did not speak about the adoption of a single currency for the Eurasian Economic Union. The issue is not included in the agenda of Armenia and it is not serious to talk about a common currency for such a long time, says Republican Artak Zakaryan. Armenian representatives and the Russian delegation headed by Chairman of the State Duma Sergey Naryshkin discussed the sale of Russian weapons to Azerbaijan. “Whatever reply the Russian side may give, it will not dispel our concerns as long as Russia prohibits Azerbaijan to use the weapons against Armenia.” Personally, Artak Zakaryan does not see any problem in the fact that Russia sells arms to Azerbaijan; the problem arises when these very weapons are used against Armenia. The entire world, even people in Cambodia know that the weapons bought by Azerbaijan are used against Armenia,” he said. Armenian lawmakers often talk to their Russian colleagues about the sale of weapons to Azerbaijan hinting that it lessens trust towards Russia. “The same Russia says it is interested in maintaining peace in the region.” Mr Zakaryan says neither the the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair countries, nor any other country should sell arms to Azerbaijan since it threatens not only Armenia, but also the entire region. “If Armenia is involved in a war, all projects in the region will be thwarted,” Mr Zakaryan said. In this context, he views Armenia as the main guarantee of stability in the region. Consequently, the Minsk group co-chairs should take serious steps to stop Azerbaijan from violating the ceasefire, if, of course, they want to maintain regional peace. “The Minsk Group should have strict control over each and every case of ceasefire violation and apply concrete mechanisms for their investigation and punishment,” he said in conclusion.
