Armenia may join Russia-Led customs union if only Karabakh is invited to join it too

YEREVAN, June 6. / ARKA /. A senior member of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia argued today that Armenia could join the Russia-led Customs Union that includes also Kazakhstan and Belarus only if   Nagorno-Karabakh Republic  (NKR) were invited to join it too. 

Speaking at a news conference, Gagik Minasian, chairman of a parliament committee on finance and budget affairs, said Armenia is already having a customs union with NKR and in case Yerevan joins another customs union it will have to create a customs border with Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.

"Are we ready for this? Of course not," he answered his own question.

In his opinion, if an invitation were sent to Karabakh to join the Russia-led Customs Union, it would certainly prompt interesting discussions. 

"However, this question is not resolved yet and therefore, it is illogical to talk about the full participation of Armenia in the Customs Union", he added.

Minasian said, however, that Armenia may cooperate with the Customs Union in other formats.

"I hope that negotiations will result in a format that will satisfy both Armenia and our other partners. This should be a win-win format," he said. 

On April 10 Armenia’s prime minister Tigran Sargsyan and Viktor Khristenko, the Russian head of the Customs Union’s executive body,  signed an essentially non-binding memorandum in Yerevan which says  that Armenia and the Customs Union will seek to “develop interaction” in areas such as “simplification of trading procedures,” food safety, sanitary standards and product certification. -0-