Why the President Did Not Attend the Joint Session of the Security Council: Armen Grigoryan's Explanation

In an interview on the public broadcaster's program "News in 60 Minutes", Armenian Security Council Secretary Armen Grigoryan provided clarification on why the President of Armenia did not participate in the session. He stated, "Since it was the first time such a session was taking place, the format was discussed extensively, even until the night of March 11. We had an idea in mind beforehand, but it wasn't clear until the night how it would unfold. When it was finally clarified, we understood that it would be good for the president to have the opportunity to participate. Due to his commitments, the president was unable to attend."

In response to a journalist's question about whether this session was a response to the statements of the OSCE co-chairs, Grigoryan replied, "I wouldn't say it was a response; the meeting had been planned in advance. The ideas that were voiced had been expressed multiple times before, and we discussed them again."

Commenting on Prime Minister Pashinyan's assertion that Yerevan should also prepare the Azerbaijani people for peace, the Security Council Secretary expressed confidence that the Azerbaijani people are ready for peace: "We are convinced that the Azerbaijani people are ready for peace and that we should continue the dialogue with them." When a journalist pointed out that based on their messages, this does not appear to be the case, Grigoryan responded, "We don't see it from the government; we see there is an opportunity to speak with the people."