Մատչելիության հղումներ

Opposition Bloc Insists On Fresh Elections


Armenia -- PM Vardan Bostanjian (L) and opposition representative Felix Khachatrian hold a public debate. 13July, 2011
Armenia -- PM Vardan Bostanjian (L) and opposition representative Felix Khachatrian hold a public debate. 13July, 2011

The Armenian National Congress (HAK) is only interested in discussing the holding of fresh national elections in its upcoming negotiations with government representatives, a member of the opposition alliance said on Wednesday.


“The authorities in this country are illegitimate,” Felix Khachatrian told journalists. “They were elected through fraud, barbaric fraud, and that is why they are failing to accomplish anything.”

Khachatrian is one of five members of the HAK’s negotiating team formed in early June. President Serzh Sarkisian and his three-party governing coalition appointed their delegation last week.

Sarkisian and coalition representatives have repeatedly ruled out the conduct of fresh presidential and parliamentary elections. Vartan Bostanjian, a member of the government delegation representing the Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK), reaffirmed this stance during a public debate with Khachatrian. He said he would instead like to discuss with HAK negotiators socioeconomic problems facing Armenia.

Bostanjian noted at the same time that he does not know if the opposition demands for snap elections would leave the dialogue between the authorities and the HAK in deadlock.

The exact date of the start of the negotiations is not yet known. A spokesman for Sarkisian said at the weekend that they could get underway by the end of this week.
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