The signing of the Armenian-Turkish protocols became one of the pivotal events of 2009. The protocols will remain high on the agenda in 2010. On January 12 the Constitutional Court of Armenia is expected to consider the documents.
The procedure of ratification of international agreements differs in Armenia and Turkey. In Turkey international agreements are ratified through adoption of laws. “Turkey adopts a law on ratification of international agreements. Actually, the text of the agreement becomes the text of the law. Therefore, the procedure differs from the one applied in Armenia, where international agreements are ranked higher than national laws,” Armenianlawyer Hrayr Tovmasyan clarifies, according to the report of Public Radio of Armenia.
In Turkey the protocols are still in the stage of parliamentary discussion. In Armenia the protocols will first be considered by the Constitutional Court. Before the protocols are submitted to the National Assembly, the Constitutional Court will have to answer to what extent the commitments enlisted in the protocols correspond to Armenia’s Constitution.
Hrayr Tovmasyan considers that the protocols will hardly be declared anti-constitutional.
