In a speech to participants at the HAK’s March 14 convention, Ter-Petrosian’s close ally Levon Zurabian said the HAK is prepared to take concrete steps toward uniting opposition groups, singling out cooperation with Karapetian’s Strong Armenia party.
“It is necessary to unite all influential democratic, rational, realistic political forces. Therefore, we declare that for that purpose we are ready to begin the consolidation process together with the Strong Armenia party and other opposition forces,” Zurabian, the HAK’s deputy chairman and candidate for prime minister in the upcoming elections, said.
Zurabian’s remarks came two weeks after Ter-Petrosian praised Karapetian, effectively endorsing him ahead of Armenia’s June 7 parliamentary elections.
The 81-year-old former president, who led Armenia to independence in 1991, told media in late February that only the Russian-Armenian tycoon can unite the “fragmented opposition” ahead of the elections.
Former Armenian President Levon Ter-Petrosian (file photo)
“One must finally understand that the unification of the opposition is not a political issue but simply a matter of saving the nation,” he said.
Ter-Petrosian did not attend the weekend convention of his extra-parliamentary party, but in his address read out to its delegates he shared his “feeling” that “if the opposition wins the upcoming elections, a major overhaul will really take place in our country.”
Strong Armenia is an offshoot of the Mer Dzevov (In Our Way) movement, which Karapetian launched in late August, two months after he was arrested and prosecuted following strong criticism of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s efforts to depose the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Catholicos Garegin II.
Karapetian was initially taken into custody for what law-enforcement authorities claimed was a call for a violent overthrow of the government. Later, he was also charged with tax evasion, fraud and money laundering. The businessman rejects all charges as politically motivated.
The new party led by Karapetian is expected to be one of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s main challengers in the upcoming elections.
Strong Armenia has announced that Karapetian, who is currently under house arrest, will be its candidate for prime minister. Under the Armenian Constitution, however, Karapetian cannot become prime minister because of his dual Russian citizenship. His party said last month that it will try to remove this constitutional hurdle if it wins the elections.
“Ter-Petrosian is trying to contribute to [opposition] consolidation by assuming a supra-party posturing, but in our election campaign, naturally, we are presenting our own program, and we are confident that no one will implement it better than us,” Zurabian explained.
“It’s another thing that Ter-Petrosian believes, and perhaps rightly so, that Samvel Karapetian can do the consolidation work better,” he added.
Strong Armenia did not immediately respond to the HAK’s call. Speaking at the convention, Artur Mikayelian, a representative of Karapetian’s political party, expressed gratitude to all extra-parliamentary forces “who share the belief that they will win not by competition, but by unity.”
“Armenia has strength. Armenia has potential. Armenia has worthy people. What we need is not a hero, but consolidation, not a miracle, but will and the right direction. We are on that path. And that path will be twice as steady if we go along it together,” he said.
Representatives of several other opposition parties, including Edmon Marukian’s Bright Armenia, attended the HAK convention as guests. Marukian also spoke in favor of opposition consolidation ahead of the elections.
Pashinian has accused Karapetian and some other opposition groups of promoting Moscow’s agenda, while also expressing confidence that his ruling Civil Contract party will score another resounding victory in the forthcoming elections.