January 20-21, Rzeszów (Poland)
Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum Steering Committee member Hovsep Khurshudyan participated in the annual meeting of the Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of the Eastern Partnership (CORLEAP) and then attended several key events in Vienna.
Also participating in the Conference from Armenia were Emin Yeritsyan, President of the Union of Communities of Armenia, who was elected Co-Chair of CORLEAP for the coming year, for which I congratulate him, and Armen Galjyan, Head of the “Civil Contract” faction of the Yerevan Council of Elders.
Dear CORLEAP members and guests of the 13th CORLEAP Annual Meeting!
Thank you for inviting me to the meeting. Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum is ready to deepen cooperation with CORLEAP in the field of education, civil society, and especially Youth engagement in the local self-government, in the field of revealing the potential of communities and the grooving of the effectiveness of the local self-government in the EaP region through the sharing the best European experience and through the education of the EaP countries local self-governmental officials the EU standards in the field of local self-governance. In this regard, the EaP CSF is ready to collaborate with CORLEAP to establish the CORLEAP Academy.
We are living in difficult times, full of threats and challenges, coming not only from the borders, as in the case of Russia, but also from within Europe and the West in general, and from within the Eastern Partnership region. I mean the dictatorial regimes of Azerbaijan and Belarus. I think that Europe cannot resist these threats without real consolidation. To hold back weaponizing autocracies, it is not enough to implement sanctions against them. So, to defend democracy, human rights, international law, and world order, I think Europe must first believe in its strength, be more united, and arm itself.
Political parties, community leaders, and local authorities must explain to the public the need for unity and united resistance, the need to defeat Euroscepticism, and the need for greater support for Ukraine in its fight against the Russian aggressor.
Civil societies in EaP countries continue to struggle constantly. Last year, Moldova’s civil society, together with democratic political forces, overcame a Russian attempt to interfere in Moldova’s political process and undermine its Euro-integration. However, a new challenge is coming this year during the parliamentary elections. The Georgian civil society is continuing its fight to sustain democracy, free elections, and the European choice of its country. In the country or abroad, Belarusian civil society is preparing itself to fight for democracy and free Belarus during the upcoming election, which will take place in 5 days. Ukrainian civil society, together with the people of Ukraine and as its part, continuing its existential war for freedom and sovereignty, fighting for the security of all of Europe.
In Armenia, civil society, in cooperation with democratic political forces, gathered signatures for a draft law to initiate Armenia’s accession to the EU. We succeeded in this, gathering more than the necessary 50.000 signatures. Soon, this law will be adopted by parliament, and the EU membership milestone will become the official foreign policy of the Republic of Armenia. Therefore, I call CORLEAP members, the EU, and EaP officials to welcome and support this process.
Dear colleagues, on behalf of the EaP CSF, I wish the CORLEAP 13th annual meeting fruitful work.
