The second president of Armenia and the candidate for prime minister of the "Armenia" bloc, Robert Kocharyan, has told why the "Property for Debt" program—during his term in office—was necessary.

In the video "Levon Kocharyan VS Robert Kocharyan" posted on Facebook, the father and son touch on many topics, from family traditions, the family's unwillingness to move from Nagorno-Karabakh capital Stepanakert to Armenia’s capital Yerevan, and Levon Kocharyan's engagement in politics to modern technology, AI, and the future of Armenia.

Commenting on Levon Kocharyan's remark that one of the misconceptions widespread among a part of the Armenian public is that the second president of Armenia had "robbed and embezzled billions [of dollars]," Robert Kocharyan noted that if there were any basis for those rumors, it would simply be foolish to return to Armenia.

Robert Kocharyan noted that the “Property for Debt” program implemented with Russia, as well as the sale of the Yerevan brandy factory to France, during his presidency often become a reason for reproaches.

“But isn’t the factory operating here, viticulture is developing, brandy is produced here, taxes are paid here [in Armenia]? The accusations are absurd. Sometimes you wonder if the speaker even understands what an ‘investment climate’ is. The 100 million [US dollar] debt had accumulated even before my coming [to power in Armenia]—for the restoration of the [Armenian] nuclear power plant. Imagine: Armenia’s authorities do not give property, but repay the debt from the [state] budget. Then Russia buys that very property with the same money,” Kocharyan noted.

Armenia’s nuclear power plant was shut down at the initiative of Armenia’s authorities, who had given in to the demands of environmentalists.