The Executive Body of the Republican Party of Armenia has issued a statement expressing its concern over and frustration with the foreign policy that the Government of Armenia is leading in regard to the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

The statement reads as follows:

“In light of the information provided by the minister of foreign affairs of the Russian Federation in regard to the developments unfolding in the current phase of negotiations over the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the Republican Party of Armenia expresses its concern over and frustration with the foreign policy that the Government of Armenia is leading. The foreign policy doesn’t arise from the national interests of Armenia and may lead to devastating consequences for the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Artsakh and will undermine the strong positions of the Armenian side.

Between 2008 and 2018, President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan and Minister of Foreign Affairs Edward Nalbandyan, who were generally leading Armenia’s foreign policy, never considered the phased approach to the settlement of the conflict and considered it inadmissible, unfeasible and unequivocally rejected it.

In case of the phased version, it will be impossible to envisage exercise of the right of the people of Artsakh to self-determination through the expression of free will, something that is of vital importance for the Armenian sides. This is clearly seen in the “project implying a phased approach to the settlement” declared by Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov in regard to the discussions in the current stage of the negotiations.

The foreign minister of Armenia failed to refute his Russian counterpart’s statement on the new project presented to the sides in April of last year. Therefore, the Republican Party of Armenia strongly condemns the several misleading and dishonest statements that the incumbent Armenian authorities have made about the absence of a document for negotiations.

Once again, the Republican Party of Armenia declares that any option for the settlement that is not based on the principle for guaranteed exercise and acknowledgement of the right of the people of Artsakh to self-determination, as well as the international guarantees for security of the population of the Republic of Artsakh will be rejected."