“Chorrord Ishkhanutyun” reacts to Azerbaijani official Novruz Mammadov’s claim that Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sarkisian agreed “in principle” on a “gradual” resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict at their meeting in Saint Petersburg on Monday. The paper is unconvinced by Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian’s denial of those claims. It says that Nalbandian did not categorically rule out the possibility of a phased peace accord on Karabakh.
“Zhoghovurd” says that for the past two decades the dominant view in Armenia has been that an Armenian president would rather resign than agree to territorial concessions to Azerbaijan demanded by international mediators. “Everyone, including government officials, has had such a realization,” writes the paper. “It is evident to everyone that an Armenian official who would dare to surrender lands would thereby sign their own death sentence in the political and other senses … But after the [recent Armenian] constitutional changes Serzh Sarkisian’s resignation would not only fail to solve the problem but could also create a constitutional crisis. If Serzh Sarkisian suddenly decides to step down tomorrow Armenia’s government system will be disrupted, to say the least.”
“Aravot” runs an editorial on the first anniversary of dramatic street protests in Yerevan against a rise in electricity prices in Armenia. “One year ago, I became finally convinced that the younger generation has better qualities than we do,” writes its editor, Aram Abrahamian. “That happened during the ‘Electric Yerevan’ movement. The young people protesting against the rise in electricity tariffs were not supporters of any political party. They had no obvious leaders and did not come up with dull speeches and slogans repeated for 25 years. They simply came and occupied Marshal Bagramian Avenue, spent nights, sang, danced and socialized there. They had different levels of education, social statuses and backgrounds. But they were united by a sense of [attachment to] the state. A state where they were born and where they want to live.”
“Haykakan Zhamanak” recalls the use of disproportionate force by the Armenian police on the first night of the “Electric Yerevan” protests. “Dozens of protesters were beaten up, and 237 activists and journalists were detained and kept at police stations for up to 12 hours,” says the paper.
(Tigran Avetisian)