EU-Armenia Agreement ‘not fully effective' two years after signing – expert

The Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between the European Union and Armenia has not yet been fully brought to life despite the two-year period since its signing, Anna Karapetyan, the Director of the Yerevan-based analytical center Hayatsk (Insight), said Wednesday, stressing the importance of more consistent efforts towards effectuating the deal.

The agreement, signed in Brussels on November 24, 2017, has for now been ratified only by 16 out of the 27 EU member states.

In an interview with Tert.am, Karapetyan noted that the document is now only "80 percent effective", with only the clauses directly addressing the member states being in a proces of active enactment. "The agreement will fully enter into effect only after ratification by all the EU member states," she said, adding that the timetable of the main events (steming directly from the agreement) has been already coordinated, with the addresses' list finalized and the joint bodies with the EU having been formed.  

"The implementation of the agreement is an institutional, porcedural and daily process ranging from legal reforms to the realization of projects in different sectors. That is to say, the agreement's impact may be even tangible in several areas now, without their connection with the European Union being necessarily visible to individual citizens," she added.

Karapetyan also highlighted the political implications behind the deal. "The signing of the agreement was an important step for Armenia in terms of maintaining – and developing further – the European vector after the membership in the EAEU. Long and ardous efforts made this signing possible, which of course had its positive impact on Armenia's international perception and reputation," she said, appreciating the simultaneously developing policy vectors in both the European and Eurasian directions.

As another important component of the deal, Karapetyan pointed out to the clause dealing with Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh), emphasizing the strong focus on the Helsinki Final Act (outlining the principles of territorial integrity, people's right to self-determination, and non-use of force and threat of force). "By ratifying the agreement, each of the EU member states puts, in point of fact, its signature below the wording, restricting Azerbaijan's further chances for maneuvers," she added.

Summing up her analysis, the expert called for further more concentrated efforts towards accomplishing the ratification "within the shortest possible timeframes " to achieve maximum effectiveness.