Peace and enhanced international cooperation
PROMOTING INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION, SECURITY, AND PEACE
5.1 In the context of strengthening capacity in the defense sector, forming an external security environment favorable to Armenia, and supporting global and regional stability, Armenia ascribes importance to international military-political cooperation.
5.2 In the defense and security sectors, Armenia shall continue to develop both bilateral and multilateral formats of military, military-political, and military-technical cooperation with the Russian Federation, including the expansion of collective defense capabilities and continual advancement of allied relations.
5.3 Armenia actively participates in joint initiatives within the framework of the CSTO, aimed at the effective protection of mutual interests of member states and the development of institutional capacity. Armenia shall continue to work towards ensuring the fulfillment of allied commitments by the member states of the CSTO and increasing its organizational effectiveness.
5.4 We shall continue to ascribe importance to military-political consultations and cooperation in our relations with the USA, aimed at reforming defense institutions and the development of the Armenian Armed Forces’ interoperability.
5.5 Reforming the defense sector and assisting international peacekeeping operations is a major direction of Armenia-NATO cooperation. We shall continue political dialogue with NATO in the defense and security sectors as an element of building Armenia’s defense capacity.
5.6 In the context of national security, Armenia is committed to pursuing its interests within international institutions of economic integration, diversifying and strengthening the interconnectivity of regional transportation and energy infrastructure, and participating in infrastructure corridors formed on the basis of inclusivity.
5.7 Armenia is both an active player and an initiator within the Eurasian Economic Union, ascribing importance to its integration processes. Cooperation between economies and economic entities of other regions and the EAEU are a means of expanding Armenia’s opportunities for international economic cooperation.
5.8 We ascribe importance to sectoral cooperation with the European Union and shall consistently work towards maximizing existing opportunities, particularly the Armenia-EU CEPA economic dialogue and the implementation of its economic components.
5.9 Armenia shall conduct proactive and effective multilateral diplomacy with the conviction that effective multilateralism fosters equitable cooperation between large and small states, and is a prerequisite for international security, peace, and development.
5.10 Effective cooperation within the framewok of the UN contributes to the localization of international best practices and the use of resources in Armenia’s programs aimed at sustainable development. It also holds important significance in increasing Armenia’s capacity in the prevention of genocide and the struggle against terrorism, other violent manifestations of extremism, cyber crime, the illicit drug trade, and other transnational crimes, as well as in disaster risk management.
5.11 Armenia shall remain active in the military-political, economic-environmental, and human dimensions of the OSCE, viewing them as important components of regional security and stability.
5.12 We shall continue to support the instilling and disseminating of human rights, democracy, rule of law, and tolerance within the framework of the Council of Europe.
GENOCIDE PREVENTION
5.13 Preventing genocide and crimes against humanity is one of the most important components of Armenia’s security and foreign policy, reflected in Armenia’s strategic approach to both regional security and international cooperation.
5.14 The responsibility to protect the population of the Republic of Armenia and Artsakh is a cornerstone of our foreign and defense policy.
5.15 Genocide prevention in the international arena is not only a legal obligation for us but also a moral one. As descendents of the victims of the first genocide of the 20th century, the Armenian nation and the state it founded are committed to protecting the right to life of ethnic, religious, and racial groups and their members.
5.16 On the global level, the Republic of Armenia honors this commitment by engaging and assuming a leading role in international cooperation based on the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
5.17 International recognition and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide greatly contributes to the prevention of new genocides.
5.18 Turkey’s respect for the comprehensive security of Armenia and the Armenian people must be part of protecting the rights of the victims of the Armenian Genocide and their descendants.
5.19 Turkey’s recognition of the Armenian Genocide and the rights of its victims and their descendants shall form the necessary basis for overcoming the consequences of the Armenian Genocide.
ARMENIA-DIASPORA RELATIONS: A PAN-ARMENIAN OUTLOOK
5.20 Among the most important components of Armenia’s national security policy is the further development of relations and cooperation between Armenia and its Diaspora to a new pinnacle. Ascribing importance to the unity between the Republic of Armenia, Artsakh, and the Armenians dispersed throughout the world, the Republic of Armenia adopts a Pan-Armenian outlook, one of forming a unified Pan-Armenian agenda.
5.21 Armenia-Diaspora relations aim to create a Pan-Armenian format, based on a participatory principle, for resolving pan-national issues and priorities. In the context of developing a PanArmenian outlook, the Holy Armenian Apostolic Church, with its hierarchic Dioceses, the Armenian Catholic Church, and the Armenian Evangelical Church, as well as the Pan-Armenian structures of the Diaspora, play an important role.
5.22 The primary goal of Armenia-Diaspora relations is protecting Armenian interests, as well as ensuring progress through collective action.
5.23 The Diaspora is part of Armenia’s competitive and powerful potential. We shall undertake steps to involve the abilities of the Diaspora in resolving state-building, security, economic, scientific-educational, demographic, technological, modernization, and other strategic issues that pose a challenge to the country.
5.24 The main threats to the development of Armenia-Diaspora cooperation include the assimilation of diasporan Armenians, the endangered condition of both Armenian spiritual-cultural values abroad and the Western Armenian language, and the deterioration in living conditions and endangered physical existence of Armenian communities in zones of conflict.
5.25 With the purpose of advancing the security of the Republic of Armenia and Artsakh, as well as strengthening the position of Armenians in the Diaspora, we shall support the realization of the political, economic, social, and cultural potential of Armenians worldwide.
5.26 We shall stimulate the implementation of programs with collective participation from the Republic of Armenia, Artsakh, and the Diaspora, which, in parallel to contributing to the development of the Republic of Armenia and Artsakh, also enrich the abilities and the potential of the Diaspora.
5.27 Armenia is committed to preserving Armenian identity and developing Armenian educational and cultural life in the Diaspora, as well as to exerting efforts toward the inclusion back into the Armenian collective of those who have been separated from the Armenian environment.
5.28 We are committed to creating new connections between various diasporan communities and to stimulating an environment conducive to inter-community cooperation, as well as to strengthening the global Armenian network through the use of modern technology and the transnational transfers of resources, skills, and ideas that it provides.
5.29 Armenia shall encourage repatriation through individual initiatives and state programs. With this purpose in mind, we shall ensure sufficient conditions for Armenians to assemble in Armenia and integrate into the educational-cultural and socio-economic spheres. Armenia shall also encourage organized repatriation, with the purpose of ensuring the safety of Armenians, in times of geopolitical confrontation.
5.30 Within the limits of its capacity, Armenia, in cooperation with the countries of citizenship of its diasporan compatriots, shall continue to provide necessary support to the Armenian communities of the Diaspora, in order to withstand immediate security challenges.
