We are doing this to strengthen Armenia's statehood, sovereignty and security, we are doing this to make Armenia an internationally responsible partner. Nikol Pashinyan stated this at a press briefing Thursday—and regarding the removal of Mount Ararat’s image from Armenia border entry and exit stamps put on passports.

Pashinyan assured that such matters have not been and cannot be discussed in the negotiations between Armenia and Turkey. According to him, the matter of these stamps was raised months ago when there was no agreement on the visit of Turkey's special representative for the normalization of relations to Armenia. Pashinyan added that the factor of legitimacy is key from the point of view of security strategy.

“We [i.e. Armenia] ourselves must recognize and are recognizing Armenia's territorial integrity, sovereignty, and jurisdiction within the framework of internationally recognized territories and borders. We are doing this as we want to ensure the longevity of our state; and, for this, we need to put the state into the right aerodynamics. We want Armenia to be an internationally responsible partner and live by internationally recognized norms. Armenia is guided by this logic and the strategy of legitimacy,” he emphasized.

The Armenian premier recalled that these stamps with Mount Ararat’s image did not exist until 2004,

“If we want to show something with a stamp, then it should be related to the internationally recognized territory of Armenia. [But] at the moment, I do not see such a need,” the Armenian PM concluded.