Sajjad Karim, the co-chair of the EU-Armenia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee with Armenian member of Parliament Armen Ashotyan
YEREVAN—The European Union does not foresee obstacles in ratifying the EU-Armenia Comprehensive and Extended Partnership Agreement (CEPA), which was signed in Brussels late last month.
This was the message delivered by Sajjad Karim, the co-chair of the EU-Armenia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee, who is on a visit to Yerevan this week.
The national legislatures of all 28 EU member states have to ratify the agreement, after which the document will be discussed and eventually approved by the European Parliament.
“The agreement includes financial assistance for the implementation of different programs. We have traditionally worked in accordance with the “more for more principle,” which envisages certain conditions,” Sajjad Karim told a press conference following the Committee’s 17th sitting in Yerevan.
He added that “Armenia needs to show clear progress in the spheres we ‘have outlined and agreed upon.” They reflect Armenia’s willingness to develop its own future as a sovereign state. The European Union is ready to provide necessary support to the process,” Karim said.
Upon the conclusion of the sitting the Committee adopted a statement, which not only reflects the past and present of EU-Armenia relations, but also outlines the development priorities meeting the interests of the two parties.
They also adopted a document confirming the cooperation between the two Parliaments.
Asked about Azerbaijan’s “black lists,” Sajjad Karim said “We stand against black lists and will be resisting them. He added that “European parliamentarians are free in their actions, but have to notify in what status they are visiting Nagorno Karabakh.” Otherwise, he noted that “the personal statements can be seen as official and create misunderstanding.”
Source: Asbarez
Link: EU Sees No Obstacles in Ratifying Comprehensive Agreement with Armenia