YEREVAN. – The negotiations should be conducted without the media, and as a result of free speech.

Vahram Baghdasaryan, head of the parliamentary faction of the Ruling Republican Party (RPA) of Armenia, on Friday stated the aforesaid to reporters at the National Assembly (NA).

He recalled that they had called on the Armenian president to organize political consultations.

“We [the RPA] are open for negotiations and ready to discuss any agenda matter,” Baghdasaryan said. “But we will not go into ultimatums, compulsions, and we will not go with such negotiation called format.”

To the remark that opposition Civil Contract Party Political Council member and NA “Way Out” (Yelk) Faction head Nikol Pashinyan had called on people to “flood” the streets of capital city Yerevan and block the parliament building on May 1, when the NA will elected the next Prime Minister, Baghdasaryan responded as follows, in particular: “We [the RPA] will go with the constitutional way. If that is his [Pashinyan’s] constitutional way, let him do so.”

And when asked whether this will lead to clashes, Vahram Baghdasaryan noted: “If we [the RPA] were not worried, we would have gone to clashes long ago. All our worry and objective is that there will be no clashes. Negotiations are announced when political forces will give their consent; we are ready for negotiations.”

After 11-day nationwide protest actions by the Nikol Pashinyan-led movement, ex-President and RPA leader Serzh Sargsyan on Monday resigned from his recently-elected post of Prime Minister.

Subsequently, Pashinyan announced that they will continue negotiations with the incumbent authorities on Wednesday, and toward achieving a smooth transfer of power in Armenia. But it became clear on Tuesday evening that this talk would not take place.  

Acting PM and RPA Vice Chairman Karen Karapetyan stated that Pashinyan had posited new, unilateral demands.

Nikol Pashinyan, in turn, announced that they are resuming their protests as of Wednesday, since the RPA wants to retain power at the expense of Sargsyan’s resignation.

And on Thursday, Pashinyan invited Karapetyan to start the second round of negotiations on Friday, and before the media.

But Aram Araratyan, the spokesperson of Karen Karapetyan, on Friday issued a statement, according to which the acting PM considers “negotiations” with Nikol Pashinyan viewless, and therefore he refused to take part.