Strategy of Armenia’s Safe Development

[Armanen]

Strategy of Armenia’s safe development is accepted – interview of the Chair of the Inter-Departmental Commission Serzh Sargsyan

On February 7, the Armenian president accepted the Strategy of National Security of the Republic of Armenia. The strategy was elaborated within a year by the Inter-Departmental Commission led by the presidential National Security Council Secretary, Defense Minister Serzh Sargsyan. The basis for the strategy was laid by his report “Basic guidelines of the Strategy of National Security of the Republic of Armenia” introduced two years ago to the commandment of The Republic of Armenia Armed Forces. Defense minister’s spokesman Seyran Shakhsuvaryan asked Serzh Sargsyan to comment on the event.

Mr. Minister, how do you assess the fact that the Armenian president accepted the Strategy of National Security of the Republic of Armenia?

The fact of enacting the National Security Strategy, the first one in the history of Armenian statehood is a political event of both national and regional importance. The successful experience of independent Inter-Departmental elaboration of the strategy by Armenian experts observing contemporary requirements to the process of coordinating the document in Armenia as well as in world’s leading think-tanks. I see it necessary to thank the Russian National Security Council secretary, the US Defense Secretary, as well as NATO experts for giving consultations and rendering methodological assistance in elaborating the key political document of our state. At that I would like to appreciate understanding and respect shown by foreign partners concerning our right and our willingness to develop the national document independently.

Could you, please, give a brief on the document?

The strategy defines the system of domestic and external threats to Armenia’s security and means to counter them effectively, as well as strategy of Armenia’s functioning to secure safe, sustainable and democratic development of Armenian society.

Why was such a complicated format of approbation of the drat strategy in leading think-tanks of Moscow-Washington-Brussels chosen? It would have been easier to restrict oneself to discussions inside Armenia, wouldn’t it?

We needed a competent professional community, where we could discuss systematically all aspects of Armenia’s safe and sustainable development in the context of establishing the regional framework of security. The reality is, in our country scientific school in security is on the stage of formation. In these conditions, we wanted to have guarantees that the work meets world professional standards. It was also important to provide for favorable conditions for balanced exchange of political messages and ideas over the whole range of sensitive aspects of Armenia and our security partners’ national interests.

These were the idea that made us choose the non-trivial format of approbation, Yerevan-Moscow-Washington-Brussels, in order to reflect the essence of multiple view and balance of strategic security targets of the Republic of Armenia.

Please, give your assessment of the outcome of the approbation…

Generally, positive outcomes of the approbation of the draft strategy by the research community were summed up during an open discussion at the National Assembly. The Inter-Departmental Commission, after it reviewed over 700 proposals, established an over-party system product that passed a trustworthy professional test in Washington, Moscow and Brussels. Publications of the strategy by Harvard University School of Government, as well as comments on the draft strategy made by the National Defense Institute (USA), the Russian Presidential Academy of Public Service, by group of international security experts of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council.

Could you point out what the news in the Inter-Departmental political technology of elaborating the strategy?

From the point of view of political practice the novelty is in introducing progressive political technological culture of strategic decision making not by administrative methods, which is traditional for post-Soviet countries, but by Inter-Departmental preparation of a system interdisciplinary product. At that, as our foreign partners stress, observation of current professional transparency standards was unprecedented.

How would you characterize the commission you head?

I had a chance to lead a group of 28 experts, who mostly specialize in strategic planning. In general, deputy ministers and top officials of equivalent status from 19 agencies as well as members of the National Assembly showed responsibility and professionalism within a year of joint work. High practical and scientific qualification of the commission members needs to be mentioned as well. Over a half of the commission had PhDs, full members of Armenia’s National Academy of Sciences and the Russian Academy of Military Sciences, four generals, two diplomats in the ranks of ambassador and minister plenipotentiary. Russian and American specialists rendered invaluable assistance to us in achieving methodological compatibility of various agencies. A possibility of guiding the process of preparing a product by a collective through the way of delegating powers to members of the commission and their keen participation in the professional joint authorship was especially interesting for me.

I find it necessary to point out the contribution Armenia’s Defense Ministry Institute of National Strategic Studies made in the scientific consulting on the document at all stages of the Inter-Departmental Commission’s activity. It was the Defense Ministry Institute that acted as secretary of the commission and carried out invisible work, on the first sight, but it was very important from the point of view of consolidating effort of all participants of the collective work and coordination of persistent mutual consultations. Head of the institute and Secretary of the Inter-Departmental Commission, Gen. Hayk Kotanjyan was entrusted to represent Armenia’s interests as reporter in upholding the draft strategy during professional approbation in Washington, Moscow and Brussels. After all the approbations at respectable professional think-tanks, I received written confirmations that the product meets current standards.

How will the National Security Strategy be brought to the notice of specialists and the public?

The approved text of the strategy has already been published on the website of the Defense Ministry, where for the last year the program and results of the Inter-Departmental Commission were presented. In the near future, text of the Strategy will be published in three languages by Defense Ministry’s journal Haykakan Banak. The number of copies of the document will be directed at a wide audience of professionals and readers.

It was your initiative to enact the strategy not as a law but as a presidential decree. Please, explain the democratic initiative of the defense minister.

In the beginning of the process we were oriented towards a parliamentary confirmation of the National Security Strategy by the way of adopting it as a law. However, after examining experience of other countries, we learned that transforming the strategy into a law in accordance with requirements of the Law on Standard Acts could become a “strait-jacket” for development of civil society and democratization of Armenia in general. At the same time, experience of approving such political documents by presidents justified itself in the Russian Federation, the United States and a number of other countries of the world. Shortly speaking, my proposal in this case was guided by practical political accounting of our national security interests.

Some foreign experts say that delays of the Azerbaijani document is stipulated by incompatibility of the despotic nature of the authorities in Baku with democratic nature and transparency of political technologies needed for inter-departmental strategic decision making. How could you comment on this?

It is quite probable that foreign experts are right. At the same time, it is Azerbaijan’s matter to decide when and how they should elaborate their key political document. Let me confine to it in my comment.

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