EU Monitoring Mission in Armenia may include representatives of third countries

• 01.25.2023, 15:55
•  Europe,  World,  Armenia

euneighbourseast.eu

The EU Monitoring Mission to Armenia (EUMA) may include representatives of non-EU third countries, according to the European Council's decree on sending a new Monitoring Mission to Armenia.
It is noted that without affecting the decision-making autonomy of the EU and its unified organisational structure, third countries may be invited to contribute to the Mission on condition that they bear the costs of their seconded personnel, including salaries, all-risk insurance, per diem and travel expenses to and from Armenia, and contribute to the Mission's operating costs, as appropriate.
The Mission is reported to consist mainly of staff seconded by Member States, EU institutions or the European External Action Service.
In exceptional cases, in duly justified cases where qualified candidates from member states are not available, third-country nationals may be hired on a contractual basis, depending on the circumstances.
More than €8 million has been allocated for the first four months of the mission.
The strategic objective of the EUMA is to help reduce incidents in the conflict affected and border areas of Armenia, to reduce the risks for the population living in such areas and thereby contribute to the normalisation of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
To this end the Mission will promote confidence-building between Armenia and Azerbaijan in ways which maintain its credibility as an impartial interlocutor by:
(a) monitoring through routine patrols and reporting on the situation on the ground and any conflict-related incidents to ensure detailed awareness of the security situation;

(b) contributing to the safety of persons in areas affected by conflict, in particular by gathering information through special patrols and reporting situations where, because of the direct or indirect effects of the conflict, lives and basic human rights are threatened;

(c) through its activities under (a) and (b) and through its continuous and visible presence on the ground, helping to build confidence between the populations of Armenia and Azerbaijan and, where possible, between the authorities of these countries, in support of peace and stability in the region, the decree states.