Opposition leader Levon Ter-Petrosian will again run for president next year if he sees “favorable conditions” for doing that, a leading member of his Armenian National Congress (HAK) said on Friday.
“It is very natural that if there are favorable conditions for that in the autumn, he will be the prime candidate to be nominated by the Armenian National Congress,” Zurabian told a news conference.
Asked to elaborate on those conditions, Zurabian said, “That includes the political situation, the configurations in the parliament and on the street, political agreements, the international situation, the economic situation in Armenia, the extent of social discontent. There are so many factors that need to be analyzed.”
“Ter-Petrosian did whole research, he analyzed all these factors before deciding in 2007 to run [in the February 2008 presidential election,]” he added.
Ter-Petrosian, who served as Armenia’s first president from 1998-2008, was the main opposition candidate in the 2008 election. He finished second in the contest, according to official vote results which he and his supporters consider fraudulent.
The HAK leader hinted at his intention to contest the February 2013 presidential election in an interview with RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) last April. “As long as I am able to, I will fight against these authorities,” he said when asked about his participation in the vote.
Zurabian said the 67-year-old ex-president could again drum up broad-based opposition support if he decides to enter the presidential race. “I see no other figure who can consolidate the whole opposition field,” he said. “Everyone in the HAK thinks so. But again, that doesn’t mean that we must make decisions today. That would be unserious.”
“It is very natural that if there are favorable conditions for that in the autumn, he will be the prime candidate to be nominated by the Armenian National Congress,” Zurabian told a news conference.
Asked to elaborate on those conditions, Zurabian said, “That includes the political situation, the configurations in the parliament and on the street, political agreements, the international situation, the economic situation in Armenia, the extent of social discontent. There are so many factors that need to be analyzed.”
“Ter-Petrosian did whole research, he analyzed all these factors before deciding in 2007 to run [in the February 2008 presidential election,]” he added.
Ter-Petrosian, who served as Armenia’s first president from 1998-2008, was the main opposition candidate in the 2008 election. He finished second in the contest, according to official vote results which he and his supporters consider fraudulent.
The HAK leader hinted at his intention to contest the February 2013 presidential election in an interview with RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) last April. “As long as I am able to, I will fight against these authorities,” he said when asked about his participation in the vote.
Zurabian said the 67-year-old ex-president could again drum up broad-based opposition support if he decides to enter the presidential race. “I see no other figure who can consolidate the whole opposition field,” he said. “Everyone in the HAK thinks so. But again, that doesn’t mean that we must make decisions today. That would be unserious.”