Politics

The politics of Armenia takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President is the head of government, and of a pluriform multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and parliament.

The Armenian government's stated aim is to build a Western-style parliamentary democracy as the basis of its form of government. However, international observers have questioned the fairness of Armenia's parliamentary and presidential elections and constitutional referendum since 1995, citing polling deficiencies, lack of cooperation by the Electoral Commission, and poor maintenance of electoral lists and polling places. For the most part however, Armenia is considered one of the more pro-democratic nations in the Commonwealth of Independent States. It has universal suffrage above the age of eighteen.

Executive Branch

The president is elected for a four year term by the people (absolute majority with 2nd round if necessary).

Legislative Branch

The Azgayin Zhoghov (or National Assembly) is the legislative branch of the government of Armenia. It is a unicameral body of 131 members, elected for four-year terms: 56 members in single-seat constituencies and 75 by proportional representation. The proportional-representation seats in the National Assembly are assigned on a party-list basis amongst those parties that receive at least 5% of the total of the number of the votes.

The unicameral parliament is controlled by a coalition of three political parties: the conservative Republican party, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, and the Country of Law party. The main opposition is composed of several smaller parties joined in the Justice Bloc.

Foreign Relations

Armenia presently maintains good relations with almost every country in the world, with two major exceptions being its immediate neighbours, Turkey and Azerbaijan. Tensions were running high between Armenians and Azerbaijanis during the final years of the Soviet Union. The Nagorno-Karabakh War dominated the region's politics throughout the 1990s. The border between the two rival countries remains closed to this day, and a permanent solution for the conflict has not been reached despite the mediation provided by organisations such as the OSCE. Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian represents Armenia in the peace negotiations.

Turkey also has a long history of poor relations with Armenia over its refusal to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide of 1915. The Karabakh conflict became an excuse for Turkey to close its border with Armenia in 1993. It has not lifted its blockade despite pressure from the powerful Turkish business lobby interested in Armenian markets.

Due to its position between two unfriendly neighbours, Armenia has close security ties with Russia. At the request of the Armenian government, Russia maintains a military base in the northwestern Armenian city of Gyumri as a deterrent against Turkey. Despite this, Armenia has also been looking toward Euro-Atlantic structures in recent years. It maintains good relations with the United States especially through its Armenian diaspora. According to the 2000 US census, there are 385,488 Armenians living in the country.

Armenia is also a member of the NATO Partnership for Peace as well as the Council of Europe, maintaining friendly relations with the European Union, especially with its member states such as France and Greece. A 2005 survey reported that 64% of Armenia's population would be in favour of joining the EU. Several Armenian officials have also expressed the desire for their country to eventually become an EU member state, some predicting that it will make an official bid for membership in a few years. Some too have also looked with favour in joining NATO.

Military

The Armenian Army, Air Force, Air Defence and Border Guard comprise the four branches of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia. The Armenian military was formed after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and with the establishment of the Ministry of Defence in 1992. The Commander-in-Chief of the military is the President of Armenia, Robert Kocharian. The Ministry of Defence is in charge of political leadership, currently headed by Serzh Sargsyan, while military command remains in the hands of the General Staff, headed by the Chief of Staff, who is currently Colonel-General Mikael Harutiunian.

Active forces now number about 60,000 soldiers, with an additional reserve of 32,000, and a 'reserve of the reserve' of 350,000 troops. Armenian border guards are in charge of patrolling the country's borders with Georgia and Azerbaijan, while Russian troops continue to monitor its borders with Iran and Turkey. In the case of an eventual attack, Armenia is prepared to mobilise every able-bodied man between the age of 15 and 59, with military preparedness.

The Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe, which establishes comprehensive limits on key categories of military equipment, was ratified by the Armenian parliament in July 1992. In March 1993, Armenia signed the multilateral Chemical Weapons Convention, which calls for the eventual elimination of chemical weapons. Armenia acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) as a non-nuclear weapons state in July 1993. Armenia is member of Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) along with Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. It participates in NATO's Partnership for Peace (PiP) program and is in a NATO organization called Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC). Armenia has engaged in peacekeeping mission in Kosovo as part of non-NATO KFOR troops under Greek command. Armenia has 46 members of its military forces as a part of the Coalition Forces in Iraq War.