“New stage started with Serzh Sargsyan’s speech”
"It is a mature political evaluation," this is what Head of the Armenian delegation to the PACE David Harutyunyan said as he responded to the question of how he assessed Serzh Sargsyan's thought that the document on the table is not the one that Armenia dreams of.
"The president has always said no side gets all that it wants during the resolution of such conflicts and that the final resolution will be based on mutual concessions. The Armenian side may have certain expectations, but the document that is likely to be signed includes mutual concessions. Of course, that is not the document that Armenia would like, but politics requires realism."
Talking about territorial integrity, Serzh Sargsyan said Armenia is in favor of this principle, doesn't have any territorial demands and that is why it isn't recognizing Nagorno-Karabakh's independence.
Don't you think this may serve as an occasion for discussions that won't be in Armenia's favor? In response, David Harutyunyan said:
"Serzh Sargsyan presented Armenia's commentary on the well-known Madrid Principles. Azerbaijan is subordinating the principle of the right of nations to self-determination to the principle of territorial integrity. Armenia accepts Azerbaijan's territorial integrity, but Azerbaijan must also accept the right of nations to self-determination. This was the president's subtext."
"A1+" asked Harutyunyan what Serzh Sargsyan meant when he emphasized that in case of a war, Azerbaijan would be in a more favorable situation, if that meant that Armenia's efficiency was less than that of Azerbaijan and whether it was right for the president to make that statement at a high-level organization. In response, David Harutyunyan said: "The head of state simply stated that there were different attitudes in Armenia and Azerbaijan. Armenia is in favor of a peaceful settlement, while the Azerbaijani are doing everything possible to instill hatred. If there is hatred, it means that Azerbaijan has been able to instill in its soldiers hostility against the Armenians, while Armenia is doing the opposite. But that doesn't mean that Armenia's army is less efficient or that Armenia is not ready for a counter-attack. Although it has few resources, Armenia is ready to guarantee Nagorno-Karabakh's independence."
In general, David Harutyunyan gave a positive assessment of Serzh Sargsyan's speech. "I think the president seriously touched upon the directions for improving the interior political state, the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict resolution and the normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations," says head of the Armenian delegation David Harutyunyan.
"The president's speech marked the start of a new stage. Armenia is getting ready for elections. The president emphasized that it was very important for Armenia to hold elections in a duly manner and create a political culture that will ensure Armenia's stable development," says David Harutyunyan.
Diana Markosyan
Strasbourg
