Opposition holds rally on Freedom Square

The rally organized by the opposition kicked off on Freedom Square at 18:30. 

Tigran Abrahamyan, MP of the "I have Honor" faction, in his speech touched upon the situation that has developed in recent days in Artsakh, noting that the reason for this is the idea of a mirror withdrawal of troops. "The idea of withdrawal concerned not only Artsakh, in fact, Sotk-Khoznavar section is under threat, that is, Gegharkunik, Vayots Dzor, Syunik, as well as the Yeraskh settlement of the Ararat region, regarding which Nikol Pashinyan presented this idea of mirror withdrawal of troops," Tigran Abrahamyan said, adding that this idea is part of the policy of peaceful surrender of territories. The MP also recalled that today, on April 5, marks the sixth anniversary of hostilities of 2016․ "After the hostilities, the Azerbaijanis were begging for a truce," Abrahamyan said.

In his speech, Aram Vardevanyan noted that Armenia is going through the most difficult days in the last 100 years and is on the verge of extinction.

"Today, the government promises peace, but to whom? To us? Not! Promisies Azerbaijan and Turkey, he promises that there will be no Armenian state that they will have to reckon with, the Turkish-Azerbaijani peace will start through this. This peace means the liquidation of Artsakh as a self-determined republic, means the usurpation of Syunik, it will be an area serving the Turkish-Azerbaijani routes: that's when the Turks will live peacefully," Vardevanyan said.

On April 5, as a result of the opposition rally in Freedom Square, a final political statement was adopted․

"The participants of the rally in the name of defending Armenia and Artsakh, regardless of our political and ideological differences, resolutely reject the imposed agendas of the Turkish-Azerbaijani tandem. In order to create an agenda for peace, Azerbaijan must return Armenian POWs, hostages, and other detainees sentenced to imprisonment, withdraw its troops both from the sovereign territory of Armenia and to positions on the territory of Artsakh as of November 9, 2020.

We, the participants of this rally, declare that we are guided by the following fundamental principles.

-To confirm that Armenia is the guarantor of the security and self-determination of the people of Artsakh.

-To exclude any status of Artsakh within Azerbaijan.

-To exclude the enclave state of Artsakh without reliable land connection with Armenia.

-To take steps to restore the negotiation process in the format and with the goal fixed by the decision of the 1994 OSCE summit.

-To exclude the provision of corridors under the guise of unblocking communication links at the expense of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Armenia.

-In the conditions of the use of force and the threat from Azerbaijan to exclude the signing of any interstate agreement, any process of demarcation and delimitation of the border.

-Not to sign any agreement with Azerbaijan that will prevent the realization of Artsakh's right to self-determination without restrictions.

-In Armenian-Turkish relations, to exclude any agreement that would call into question the fact of the Armenian genocide.

These principles are based on the vital interests of the Armenian people, so any government is obliged to be guided by this agenda and ensure its implementation. Putting forward this agenda doesn't mean war, but the readiness of the Armenian people to establish a real, just and decent peace, taking into account the vital interests of the Armenian people. Failure to comply with the principles presented will inevitably lead to nationwide, legitimate opposition by all possible means and methods. This statement is open to individuals, public organizations and parties sharing the presented agenda."

Pashinyan, Aliyev and Michel will meet tomorrow in Brussels

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan left for Brussels on a two-day working visit. The Prime Minister will have a private conversation with the President of the European Council Charles Michel. The trilateral meeting of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, the President of the European Council Charles Michel and the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyes is scheduled in Brussels.

Armenian third President Serzh Sargsyan referred to possible scenarios of the Pashinyan-Aliyev meeting: "I can't do assumptions," Serzh Sargsyan told journalists today at a opposition rally. 

"I don't think any document will be signed tomorrow, of course, there are such dangers, but I don't think so," the President said. Referring to the possible solutions to the Artsakh conflict over the past 30 years, Sargsyan said: "Such conflicts cannot be resolved even in 30 years, we have brought the solution as close as we could. It's not our fault that some people came and said they were starting the negotiations from their point, it's none of your business what we are negotiating, we’re negotiating whatever we want, and have reached this situation."

Eduard Aghajanyan, the head of the Commission on Foreign Relations of the National Assembly of Armenia, commented on the upcoming meeting of the heads of Armenia and Azerbaijan.

"Of course, the situation that precedes this meeting is not the best, to put it mildly, and, naturally, during this meeting very painful and sharp issues should be put on the table, and the parties will try to smooth out these sharp points and try to move forward, which, to put it mildly, will not be easy, but this is our expectation," Aghajanyan said.

Delegation led by the Speaker of Parliament of Georgia met with Nikol Pashinyan and Alen Simonyan

On April 5, at the invitation of the RA NA President Alen Simonyan the delegation led by the Speaker of Parliament of Georgia Shalva Papuashvili is in Armenia on an official two-day visit. The meeting of the Speakers of Parliaments of Armenia and Georgia began with a private talk, which was followed by the debate in the extended format.

Touching upon the regional security issues and the 44-day war aftermath, Alen Simonyan has noted that the high level of relations between Armenia and Georgia is one of the important factors ensuring the security in the South Caucasus. The Head of Parliament considered urgent the distinct response of the international community for preventing the humanitarian crisis, as well as the immediate involvement of the international humanitarian structures without obstacles in the Nagorno Karabakh.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan received the delegation led by the Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili.

Shalva Papuashvili thanked for the warm reception and said, “I want to express my deep respect for you and the Armenian people, who follow you in such a spirit. As you mentioned, today the Armenian-Georgian relations are very close. It is especially visible at the level of the Prime Ministers. And with this visit I want to reaffirm once again that there are such close relations between both the Prime Ministers and the Presidents of parliaments. We discussed and talked about the fact that these meetings, these relations should be not only official, but also at the level of friendship groups, commissions and staffs. And we also talked about that today, when the region is facing such challenges, we should be able to do everything to build lasting peace in the region."

Shalva Papuashvili added that this year Armenia and Georgia mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, which is a good opportunity to re-evaluate the friendship and the centuries-old shared history of the two countries. During the meeting the interlocutors referred to the further development of the Armenian-Georgian relations, the processes taking place in the South Caucasus, as well as in the international arena.

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