The new concept of the National Security Strategy of the Republic of Armenia presented in a separate chapter in which mentioned the importance of strengthening peace and international cooperation.
Under the heading "International Cooperation, Promoting Security and Peace", it was emphasized that Armenia attaches graet importance to international military-political cooperation in the context of strengthening defense capabilities, creating a favorable external security environment for Armenia, as well as promoting global and regional stability.
In a conversation with 1lurer.am, referring to the military component of the concept, the head of the Defense Policy Department of the RA Ministry of Defense Levon Ayvazyan noted that peace, strengthening international cooperation are included in the list of national interests, and international military-political, military-technical cooperation is aimed at strengthening peace through cooperation, raising the level of integration.
"International cooperation generally addresses two complementary key issues. The first is the development of defense capabilities, as there are wide opportunities for the development of all spheres of our army, from planning, command system to strengthening the combat effectiveness of the armed forces, the issue of replenishment with modern means", Ayvazyan said.
According to the representative of the Ministry of Defense a favorable external security environment is being created because as a result of international cooperation a system of international guarantees is being created, developing, strengthening allied-partnership relations, the international legal field and the institution of mutual commitments.
The National Security Strategy states that Armenia will continue to develop military-political, military-technical cooperation with Russia in the fields of defense, security, both on a multilateral scale and in the direction of expanding collective defense capabilities and continuing to strengthen allied relations. Ayvazyan noted that within the framework of international cooperation, that cooperation continues to be of primary importance for Armenia.
"Our strategic alliance with Russia is long-term, on a bilateral base, also within the framework of the Collective Security Treaty Organization. Our alliance with Russia is based on the idea of collective defense, as well as our common security interests. It has a very wide legal framework, which includes all aspects of defense, has effective procedures and mechanisms for implementation", Ayvazyan stressed.
Considering the security issues of international cooperation, the representative of the RA Ministry of Defense conditionally divided them into several zones.
"At the top of the strategy we can see that there is the first, the allied zone. This is our strategic alliance with the Russian Federation within the framework of the Collective Security Treaty Organization. The second zone is our partnership zone, which includes bilateral, multilateral cooperation with our partners, from the United States to China, to almost all European countries, the Middle East countries. Our relations with our neighbors are also of special importance to us, because they include issues that are vital for the security of our state", said the head of the Defense Policy Department of the RA Ministry of Defense.
The concept states that within the framework of cooperation with the United States, Armenia will continue to use military-political consultations, cooperation aimed at reforming defense institutions. At the same time it is emphasized that defense reforms and international peace support are key areas of Armenia-NATO cooperation. Armenia will continue the political dialogue with NATO in the field of defense and security. According to the representative of the Ministry of Defense, Armenia's policy has not changed in terms of cooperation within the framework of international organizations, it has a long-term nature.
"Within the framework of the CSTO, the issues of our cooperation with NATO differ from each other, but do not contradict each other, but, on the contrary, complement each other. If in the case of the CSTO we, being a founding member of that organization, establish effective mechanisms of collective defense there, then our cooperation with NATO is mainly aimed at strengthening interoperable capabilities, implementing defense reforms, as well as at forming of some system of mutual military-political restraint in our region", Levon Ayvazyan, Head of the Defense Policy Department of the RA Ministry of Defense, emphasized.
The Strategic Concept clearly states that Armenia actively participates in joint initiatives within the CSTO to promote effective protection of interests of the member states and to develop the institutional capacity of the structure. Armenia will continue to work to ensure the fulfillment of the CSTO member states' obligations to each other and to increase the organization's efficiency.
By Nare Voskanyan
