Progress, challenges and regional risks: international conference as part of REDEMOS project held at YSU

The coordinator of the REDEMOS project is the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, whose Armenian partner is the YSU Center for European Studies. Within the framework of the project, 11 partner organizations jointly study and try to understand the importance and role of democracy in Eastern Partnership countries. 

Although the project commenced in January 2023, the project participants gathered under one roof for the first time in Armenia, at Yerevan State University.

The international conference held at the university aimed to raise and discuss issues concerning EU democracy support in the Eastern Neighborhood countries, alongside discussions on democratic transformations in Armenia, authoritarian threats, and regional risks.

YSU Rector Hovhannes Hovhannisyan highlighted the significance of project implementation and YSU's involvement in REDEMOS, emphasizing that such international collaborations provide a foundation for integrating a research component at YSU.

"YSU holds the top position nationally for the publication of scientific articles in international journals. We are not limited to the level we have reached in the research and scientific components and strive for more. I think that this project is a great stimulus for research related to the institutions and processes of democracy, which is an essential requirement for Armenia, not only in theory but also in practical terms," said the YSU rector, pointing out that recently, all decisions at YSU are based on data analysis conclusions, significantly reducing the margin for error.

Speaking about the purpose of organizing the event, Arusyak Aleksanyan, Head of the Research Department at YSU European Studies Center, highlighted that the conference brought together representatives of diplomatic missions accredited in Armenia, state and non-governmental international organizations under one roof to discuss the most important issues concerning EU democracy in Eastern Partnership countries. 

"Today I have the honor of acting both as a representative of the YSU European Studies Center and a member of the big REDEMOS family. I would like to draw your attention to two important circumstances. Firstly, the developments and processes in the Eastern Neighborhood countries clearly indicate that not everything is smooth in the EU democracy support policy and its implementation process; there are problems and problematic situations", said A. Aleksanyan.

She added that the EU relies on the assistance of the expert field in similar situations. The conference aimed at making democratic policies more effective is one of the important components of that process. Referring to the second circumstance, Arusyak Aleksanyan emphasized. "The EU also sees the presence of experts from Eastern Partnership countries in the expert field. Within the framework of the project, we have the chance to work with our European partners, hand in hand, to analyze and research the democracy support issues, to make that policy more targeted and purposeful." 

The Head of the Delegation of the European Union to Armenia, Ambassador Vassilis Maragos referring to the implementation of the project and then to the issues of democracy, said: "We discuss topics such as stable democracy and human rights issues. It is necessary to emphasize that it is very relevant and crucial to discuss the problems related to human rights in this region. I am sure that investing in the implementation of such projects is extremely important." 

Professor Tobias Schumacher from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Co-Coordinator of the REDEMOS project, emphasized the relevance of the topic and noted that processes are currently underway to support democracy in various countries.

"'REDEMOS' is a concept, a large international research initiative, that has brought together 11 different educational institutions and partners from all over Europe. Essentially, we are here to understand the toolkit for developing policy concepts that can help promote stronger democracy and stability. Within the framework of the project, we will present the results of the conducted research, creating an opportunity to learn from the beneficiaries, as well as gather information," said Tobias Schumacher.

During the panel discussions, the speakers addressed topics such as democratic transformations, authoritarian threats, as well as regional risks.

The event was attended by Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia Paruyr Hovhannisyan, Swedish Ambassador Patrik Svensson, Resident Representative in Armenia Natia Natsvlishvili, MP Sona Ghazaryan, as well as representatives of RA accredited diplomatic missions, state, international and non-governmental organizations, researchers, experts and students.