YEREVAN. – The rumors, according to which Armenia’s second President Robert Kocharyan will not run in next year’s presidential elections, are finally being confirmed, Hraparak daily reports. 

“The thing is that [Prosperous Armenia Party (PAP) Chairman] Gagik Tsrukyan’s absence [at the National Assembly] during the Prosecutor General’s petition on the matter of [removing the parliamentary immunity of former FM and PAP MP Vartan] Oskanian was that drop which ultimately deepened the ‘wall of disagreement’ between Kocharyan and Tsarukyan.   

Now, Tsarukyan considers himself a separate player and is attempting to come out of Kocharyan’s field of influence for a long time. According to reliable sources, [this] process began when Tsarukyan garnered 450,000 votes in the parliamentary elections. The experts and image makers encouraged him that, with that capital, he can evade the influence of Kocharyan and [incumbent President] Serzh Sargsyan alike and start his own game,” Hraparak writes.