YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 27, ARMENPRESS. American political scientist Ian Bremmer, president and founder of Eurasia Group research and consulting firm, says Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan’s participation in and speech at the Munich Security Conference was important and welcomed.

In an interview to ARMENPRESS, Ian Bremmer said it was visible and clear to everyone that his speech was trying to bridge the yawning gap between Brussels and Moscow.

“As a small, landlocked country, that’s a really big challenge. President Sargsyan showed a perspective that is often forgotten in Brussels and in Washington—that countries in the South Caucasus, Central/Eastern Europe, and Central Asia face difficult and sometimes restricted choices in their relationships with large neighbors, and must find unique ways to preserve their foreign relationships”, the American political scientist said.

As for Armenia’s role acting as a bridge between the Eurasian Economic Union and the European Union, Ian Bremmer stated: “Let’s be honest—integration between the EAEU and the EU is not going to happen. Instead, pressure is needed from within both the EU and the EAEU to work out rules that mitigate the economic barriers of each organization. Arguably this is a more urgent matter for smaller members like Armenia”.

On the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference Ian Bremmer was holding a discussion which was attended by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, Prime Minister of Moldova Pavel Filip, Johannes Hahn, Commissioner for European Neighbourhood Policy & Enlargement Negotiations and Konstantin Kosachev, Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the Federation Council of Russia.

Ian Bremmer said the Munich Conference was a constructive panel where opinions can be expressed about the Eurasian vs European integration “models”.

“I think both Russia and Europe’s approaches to one another lack mutual understanding, and that’s important to air, which is what this panel did”, he said.

Commenting on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, Ian Bremmer said the international community still needs to push for the finalization and ultimately the implementation of the basic principles of settlement agreed a decade ago, in keeping with the mission of the OSCE Minsk Group, which, according to him, means a real peacekeeping operation.

“The goal cannot be to cast blame, but to establish peace and work out the historical grievances afterwards. The basic principles of settlement already provide a roadmap to conflict settlement. A real and sustainable ceasefire needs to be the first priority”, he said, adding that the main priority behind the settlement needs to be a top-level political agreement between Yerevan and Baku on how to implement these ground rules.

Interview by Syuzi Muradyan

English – translator/editor: Aneta Harutyunyan