The European Council today approved the proposal to start negotiations on visa liberalization with Armenia The European Council today approved the proposal to start negotiations on visa liberalization with Armenia

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>After years of negotiations, today in Brussels, the European Council finally approved the European Commission’s proposal to start negotiations on visa liberalization with Armenia, according to diplomatic sources from “Azatutyun.”

>”Following the approval of all 27 member states, the matter will be passed to the European Commission, which will then announce when exactly the negotiations will begin and what action plan it will set before Yerevan,” explains Rikard Jozwiak, editor for European affairs at “Azatutyun” radio station.

>This means that annual reports on the steps taken will be presented, continuing for several years. For some countries, such as Moldova, it took 3 to 4 years, for Georgia 5 years, and for Ukraine 9 years. Negotiations with Turkey have been ongoing for more than 10 years, so each country goes through this process differently. This is the beginning of a process that will take time to complete.

>The decision adopted today regarding Armenia states that the visa requirement will only be lifted upon the full satisfaction of all necessary criteria.

>According to Jozwiak, Brussels generally sets four main requirements: from border management to the fight against organized crime and corruption. These mainly concern internal issues such as document security, borders, readmission of illegal immigrants, but also the protection of fundamental human rights.

>This is a comprehensive list of requirements consisting of hundreds of pages that Armenia must implement, and it will take years to accomplish.

>Generally, it takes about half a year for Brussels to formulate and present the necessary action plan, according to Jozwiak. However, since a new European Commission has not yet been formed following the European Parliament elections in June, it is expected that the list of requirements for Armenia will be presented either by the end of this year or early next year. After fully implementing these, Armenia will still have to overcome one more significant obstacle.

>”The final decision in this matter rests with two bodies: one is the European Parliament, where Armenia has the necessary support, and the second is the member states. All 27 must give their consent together, which is not always easy, especially now that there is a movement in Europe against illegal immigration,” explains the editor for European affairs at “Azatutyun” radio station.

>According to him, after granting visa liberalization to Georgia two years ago, there are complaints that criminal groups are taking advantage of it or that Georgian citizens are coming through this route and then trying to obtain refugee status in Europe. Therefore, several countries, particularly Sweden, the Netherlands, and Austria, are, to put it mildly, very cautious about granting visa-free access to additional countries.

>Currently, 60 countries enjoy the possibility of entering the European Union without a visa. The requirement is that citizens of those countries can spend a maximum of 90 days within a 180-day period in the Schengen area. If this requirement is continuously violated or other reforms are not continued, Brussels can reconsider the decision.

>There is also a mechanism to suspend liberalization, which, for example, is currently being discussed in the case of Georgia, Jozwiak said.

>”This means that you can receive this privilege after prolonged efforts, but you can also lose it, and it can happen very quickly. There are many obstacles,” he noted.

>Incidentally, at today’s council meeting, EU member states will also officially approve the proposal to allocate 10 million euros from the Peace Fund to Armenia, through which the Union provides non-lethal weapons and equipment for security and stability.

>In the case of Armenia, it is planned to create a field modular camp for one battalion, which will also include a medical aid clinic.

>Both the decision to start dialogue on visa liberalization and the decision to assist Armenia from the Peace Fund are made in the context of close negotiations between Armenia and the European Union.

>”These decisions indicate that Armenia is leaning a bit more towards Brussels, but discussions about membership are still very premature. Look at the countries in your neighborhood, Georgia has obtained visa-free regime, an Association Agreement, and candidate status for membership, but even with all this, they are not closer to EU membership than they were a few years ago. They are taking small steps, while you will need to take big leaps,” said Jozwiak.

>Last October, Prime Minister Pashinyan declared in the European Parliament that Armenia is ready to be as close to the European Union as the EU considers possible.

>Months after this statement, at the beginning of this month in Yerevan, Pashinyan announced that he does not know whether the EU is ready to accept Armenia as a full member of the Union.