YEREVAN. – It appears that it is Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev who is holding a public discussion in Armenia because Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan responds solely to his announcement.

Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly Vanadzor Office Director, human rights activist Artur Sakunts noted the aforesaid at Tuesday’s public discussion devoted to Armenia’s Eurasian Economic Union (EaEU) accession process.

“We are speaking so much ever since September 3 [, 2013, when Sargsyan had announced about the plans for Armenia’s joining the Customs and the Eurasian Unions], but Serzh Sargsyan will not respond to us. But as soon as Nazarbayev said something, the president came to Armenia and responded quickly,” Sakunts said. 

The human rights activist expressed a conviction that in this case the civil society must stand up likewise in Armenia, and to change the situation.

“A situation arises where we may not avoid casualties, but we shall not have dissent,” Artur Sakunts specifically concluded.   

The treaty on establishment of the Eurasian Economic Union was signed, in the Kazakh capital city Astana on May 29, by the leaders of Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan. In addition, Armenia President Serzh Sargsyan participated in the meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council and offered to sign a treaty on Armenia’s Union accession by no later than June 15. Russian President Vladimir Putin, for his part, stressed the need to sign a respective document with Armenia in the shortest period of time.

During the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council meeting in Astana, Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev spoke about the letter by Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev calling to accept Armenia into the Eurasian Union only within the limits of the country’s internationally recognized borders, and not including Nagorno-Karabakh.