EU launches a civilian mission in Armenia to contribute to stability in border areas

The European Union launched the EU civilian mission in Armenia (EU Mission in Armenia / EUMA) under the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP).

The EUMA was formally established by a Council Decision on 23 January 2023. Through its deployment on the Armenian side of the Armenia-Azerbaijan border, the objectives are to contribute to stability in the border areas of Armenia, build confidence and human security in conflict-affected areas, and ensure an environment conducive to the normalization efforts between Armenia and Azerbaijan supported by the EU.

The total – exclusively civilian - staff of the EUMA will be approximately 100, including around 50 unarmed observers.

The Operational Headquarters of the mission will be in Yeghegnadzor, in Armenia’s Vayots Dzor province. EEAS Managing Director of the Civilian Planning and Conduct Capability (CPCC) Stefano Tomat will serve as the Civilian Operation Commander, while Markus Ritter will serve as the Head of Mission.

It should be reminded that on January 23, the EU Council reached an agreement on creating a European Union civilian mission in Armenia.

The mission started its work today. Among the exclusively civilian staff of the EU mission in Armenia are 100 people, including about 50 unarmed observers. The operational headquarters of the mission will be located in Yeghegnadzor, Vayots Dzor, RA.

RA President Vahagn Khachaturian welcomed the arrival of the EU's long-term mission to Armenia.

"A warm welcome to the 100-person EU Monitoring Mission along the Armenian border with Azerbaijan. Deeply thankful to the EU and Member States for the manifestation of strong solidarity with Armenia. The Monitoring Mission's deployment is to play a role in de-escalation and the establishment of stability and ultimately bringing peace to the region," he wrote on Twitter.

The High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the EU Commission Josep Borell commented on the RA Civil Mission sent to Armenia.

"We launched the EU Mission in Armenia - EUMA, which is now operational and conducted its first patrol today.

EUMA will contribute to human security, build confidence on the ground, and support EU efforts in the peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan," he wrote on Twitter.

Russian Foreign Ministry commented on the EU civil mission in Armenia

Moscow sees the EU civilian mission in Armenia as an attempt to push Russia out of the region, the representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova announced.

"Emphasizing the exclusively civilian nature of the new mission, the representatives of the European Union are dishonest. It unfolds in the context of the EU's common security and defense policy. Therefore, it should be treated accordingly. Unfortunately, this is not the first time that we record the desire of the EU and the entire West to strengthen our ally Armenia by any means. In those attempts, we see an exclusively geopolitical context, far from the interests of real regulation of relations in Transcaucasia. Everything is being done to push Russia out of the region and weaken its historical role as the main guarantor of security. Publicly expressed negative assessments of Baku regarding this initiative are ignored," Zakharova stated.

According to her, the experience of the European Union's participation in the settlement of various regional conflicts is not unequivocal.

Other News

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• The Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia Paruyr Hovhannisyan with the delegation headed by Stefano Tomat.