“If Armenia-Turkey relations undergo any changes and preconditions appear, Prosperous Armenia Party will vote against the Protocols’ ratification,” Spokesman for Gagik Tsarukyan stated at Oct. 29 meeting with journalists, adding that if necessary they will withdraw from the coalition. According to him, the stage of “showing cards” commences and the parties will be forced to play overtly.

Asked whether it is not a precondition that Turkish Premier and Foreign Minister avowed that border opening is directly linked with Armenia’s concessions on Nagorno-Karabakh issue, Galstyan replied: “Officials’ statements cannot be taken as a basis to assume that there are preconditions. If Turkish Parliament makes a decision not to ratify the Protocols until the breakthrough in NKR issue registered or Armenian troops withdraw from so called &‘occupied’ territories, that will be sufficient for us to quit the process.”