We spoke with young people at the American University on Armenia’s future prospect of EU membership, with civil society on the role of the EU and reforms still to be made, and with women leaders on how to build inclusive organisations.
Last week, ELF made our last stop on our 3-year Enlargement Now Roadshow. We landed in Yerevan with a packed agenda of meetings, lectures and trainings. We spoke with young people at the American University on Armenia’s future prospect of EU membership, with civil society on the role of the EU and reforms still to be made, and with women leaders on how to build inclusive organisations.
In many ways Armenia is the furthest from EU membership on the roadshow but with the most to gain from a change in approach. Caught between geopolitical actors (see this excellent blog from Shushanik Avagyan from our hosting partner the Institute of Liberal Politics) like Russia and Europe and a complicated history with its neighbours, many Armenians we spoke to want stability but they also no longer see a future assured by their largest trading partner Russia. However, the backsliding of its neighbour Georgia acts as a disappointment for future prospects for Armenia in terms of EU integration.
Hungry for opportunity
The people we met are hungry for opportunity. For example, we met so many inspirational women leaders from business and civil society who took part in our workshop on more inclusive leadership. Many of them saw the European Union and its values as a way forward for women and men – becoming ever closer can bring safety and prosperity. An EU monitoring mission to the border with Azerbaijan was seen as a stabilising force and welcomed by many, especially the young men we met who had served in the military.
Although we saw a thirst for progress and development, we also saw a lot of understandable apathy. The 2018 Velvet Revolution has not brought the change many expected, with rule of law and human rights backsliding and the continued economic reliance on Russia delivering short-term economic benefits but not much homegrown value. Deeper trade integration with Europe would deliver much more long-term economic reforms and create real economic value but requires a leap in standards that most small Armenian business owners cannot even comprehend.
Being from Ireland, accompanied by my colleagues Fjona, an Italian/Albanian hybrid, and Ola from Poland, all of us were able to give firsthand experience of the change the EU has brought to our home countries. Still, we never sugar-coated it: the road to long-term growth through Europe isn’t easy, it takes courage but it is worth it in the long run.
Europe wants you
Listening to Armenian people from different generations, they all told us that the EU needs to communicate more clearly with them or ‘clear up their public image’ as one honest participant put it. Many of them told us ‘we are not sure Europe wants us’ and felt betrayed by the deal with Azerbaijan so soon after the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh. Although most admitted that normalisation of relations with both Azerbaijan and Turkey were crucial for the region and Armenia’s future.
Europe, a new hope
For many, moving beyond the CEPA agreement towards visa liberalisation is a key next step. The message we want to send to the Armenian people is an offer of opportunity through equal partnership, becoming ever closer as long as reforms are forthcoming and true friendship is forged. This hopeful message can trump older Russian narratives of brotherhood and dominance that no longer sit well.
Europe can appeal to the deep wish for change that we experienced in Armenia. With elections around the corner in a place where apathy and disappointment reign, Europe can become a feeling – a feeling of hope.