Pashinyan Discusses Azerbaijan’s Aggression with Non-Parliamentary Parties

October 19,  2020



Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan meets with leaders of political forces not represented in parliament on Oct. 19

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Monday met with representatives of political forces that are not represented in parliament to discuss and brief them about the ongoing Azerbaijani aggression against Artsakh that is supported by Turkey, his press office reported.

This was the second such meeting with parties not represented in parliament, with the first taking place on October 12. The same forces were in attendance at the meeting on Monday.

The meeting followed a meeting with the Parliamentary Council, which includes members of parties represented in parliament, as well as the chairs of the permanent legislative committees.

Participating in the meeting were Republican Party of Armenia spokesperson Eduard Sharmazanov; Armenian Revolutionary Federation Supreme Council of Armenia chairman Ishkhan Saghatelyan; Lilit Makunts of Pashinyan’s My Step faction, as well as parliament member Arman Babajanyan; Citizen’s Choice party executive board secretary Suren Sahakyan; and Armenian National Congress vice-president Levon Zurabyan, reported news.am.

On Saturday, Saghatelyan unveiled an announcement signed by 13 political parties calling for the “creation of a special body for the operative management of military-political issues, endowing it with the powers to make decisions, plan and coordinate operative actions.”

The parties also call for the involvement of “the former and incumbent presidents, prime ministers, ministers of defense and foreign affairs, and other persons with military and political experience of the Republics of Armenia and Artsakh in order to effectively organize the defense of the homeland.”

The announcement was signed by the Freedom party, National Agenda party, National Democratic Union party, National Self-Determination Union party, Yerkir Tsirani party, Heritage party, Bright Armenia Party, Democratic Party of Armenia, Republican Party of Armenia, Armenian Revolutionary Federation, Homeland party, For Social Justice party and One Armenia party.

Also on Saturday, the ARF Bureau Chairman Hagop Der Khachadourian met with Armenia’s former president Levon Ter-Petrossian as part of the party’s efforts to initiate dialogue with political forces in Armenia.

The two discussed the ongoing situation in the frontline and exchanged views on how best to ensure stability in Artsakh and Armenia.