Armenia has no goal of uniting with Nagorno-Karabakh, and the objectives set out in the country’s 1990 Declaration of Independence no longer reflect its current priorities, Justice Minister Srbuhi Galyan has said, arguing that the new Constitution should reflect Armenia’s present-day realities and its goals of preserving peace, strengthening sovereignty and ensuring the country’s long-term development.

“Let opposition forces put forward their own proposals and explain, for example, what mentioning the Declaration of Independence in the new Constitution would achieve, given that the Declaration’s preamble contains outdated goals,” she told the journalists at the National Assembly on November 2.

“Why are we drafting a new Constitution? We want to understand where we are now and where we are heading, what kind of state we are, and what goals we will pursue and why. No one can erase the Declaration of Independence from the pages of history, and no one should even entertain such an idea. But the fact is that the goals of the Declaration of Independence are now outdated. We have no goal of uniting Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia.

“Our goal is to ensure the long-term viability of the Republic of Armenia, its prosperity and development, and to strengthen its independence and sovereignty. These are our goals.

“We are grateful for the peace we have today. We want to preserve this peace and enshrine it institutionally. Today, we are talking about facts and the present day, and today’s reality is different,” Galyan said.