“The price of power is much higher in Armenia than in established democratic countries,” Hrayr Tovmasian, a constitutional law expert, tells “Taregir.” “For some representatives of the state authority, power is associated with accumulated wealth and, for some of them, their physical survival.” Tovmasian believes that one way to lower the stakes for the country’s ruling elite is to declare “an economic amnesty.” “If a person knows that he won’t lose his wealth in case of losing power and that coming to power is no longer a way of making a fortune, many, many people will refrain from becoming, say, parliament deputies,” he says.
“Chorrord Ishkhanutyun” claims that the declaration of the general amnesty by the Armenian authorities was the result of their humiliation by the Council of Europe. “They could have done that several months earlier, without pressure from the Council of Europe, and would not have found themselves in such a miserable state,” says the opposition daily. It says the main result of the recent session of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) was that the authorities showed that “they are really scared of and do succumb to pressures.”
Samvel Mkrtchian, Armenia’s permanent representative to the NATO headquarters in Brussels, assures “Azg” that Armenia pursues a more “pro-active” policy and is regarded by the West as a “more trustworthy partner” than Azerbaijan. “The Azerbaijani side always tries to misinform and disorient others and slander Armenia,” he says. “But that is a fruitless approach that can in no way be described as a flexible policy.”
“Golos Armenii” criticizes Armenia’s parallel efforts to make peace with Azerbaijan and normalize relations with Turkey. “History knows of no other examples of a particular country having to simultaneously reach agreements with two hostile states,” says the paper.
“The biggest obstacle in the Nagorno-Karabakh peace talks is the Armenian authorities’ lack of legitimacy,” former Foreign Minister Aleksandr Arzumanian, who was released from prison last week, tells “Haykakan Zhamanak.” “The weaker the authorities in Armenia are, the more serious their crisis of legitimacy is, the easier it is to put pressure and impose solutions on them. When your sole aim is to cling to your illegally seized post, you are susceptible to any pressure.” Arzumanian hopes that the authorities in Nagorno-Karabakh will “explicitly express their position” on the existing international peace plan.
(Aghasi Yenokian)
“Chorrord Ishkhanutyun” claims that the declaration of the general amnesty by the Armenian authorities was the result of their humiliation by the Council of Europe. “They could have done that several months earlier, without pressure from the Council of Europe, and would not have found themselves in such a miserable state,” says the opposition daily. It says the main result of the recent session of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) was that the authorities showed that “they are really scared of and do succumb to pressures.”
Samvel Mkrtchian, Armenia’s permanent representative to the NATO headquarters in Brussels, assures “Azg” that Armenia pursues a more “pro-active” policy and is regarded by the West as a “more trustworthy partner” than Azerbaijan. “The Azerbaijani side always tries to misinform and disorient others and slander Armenia,” he says. “But that is a fruitless approach that can in no way be described as a flexible policy.”
“Golos Armenii” criticizes Armenia’s parallel efforts to make peace with Azerbaijan and normalize relations with Turkey. “History knows of no other examples of a particular country having to simultaneously reach agreements with two hostile states,” says the paper.
“The biggest obstacle in the Nagorno-Karabakh peace talks is the Armenian authorities’ lack of legitimacy,” former Foreign Minister Aleksandr Arzumanian, who was released from prison last week, tells “Haykakan Zhamanak.” “The weaker the authorities in Armenia are, the more serious their crisis of legitimacy is, the easier it is to put pressure and impose solutions on them. When your sole aim is to cling to your illegally seized post, you are susceptible to any pressure.” Arzumanian hopes that the authorities in Nagorno-Karabakh will “explicitly express their position” on the existing international peace plan.
(Aghasi Yenokian)