News - Holding EU membership referendum is early now, says Armenia ruling force MP

Specifically the referendum is early now. Arman Yeghoyan, an MP of the ruling majority Civil Contract Faction and Chair of the Standing Committee on European Integration of the National Assembly (NA) of Armenia, told this to reporters at the NA Thursday—and referring to the initiative to hold a referendum on Armenia becoming a European Union (EU) member. "But the process of [Armenia’s] European integration is moving forward with full momentum, and at some phase, naturally, the turn of the referendum will also come, but now it is not that phase. I have said that there is a road [toward the EU] and we [i.e. Armenia] are going on that road. You cannot pass the second without passing the first kilometer of the road. If you want to go fast, you have to go faster, but you can't get there by skipping the road," Yeghoyan added. Regarding the extent to which the EU is ready to accept Armenia, the ruling force MP noted that the EU is made up of various institutions; for example, the European Parliament is in favor of Armenia's integration, but let's say, the European Commission looks at the matter at a technical level also. "It looks whether the given state has passed this part of the road, so that it will also pass the next part. The state must go through that road to reach a destination—be it the [EU membership] candidacy destination, or the membership destination. One traveled that road in four years, you can travel [it] in two years, but you cannot skip the road. I believe they won't mind, provided that some part of the road has been passed. Now we [i.e. Armenia] are going on that road," emphasized Yeghoyan.