All Armenians Should Have an Armenian Citizenship Passport

The Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, considers one of the most important current issues to be the elimination of the conceptual and ideological boundaries between the diaspora and Armenia. In his opinion, every Armenian should consider themselves a stakeholder of Armenia as much as those living in the country, and the most important way to achieve this is by having an Armenian citizenship passport.

According to reports from Armenpress, Pashinyan expressed this opinion during a meeting with media representatives in Los Angeles. A journalist pointed out that different leaders of the country have had varied approaches regarding the role of the diaspora. He asked what the Prime Minister's decision is regarding utilizing the resources of the diaspora in governing the country.

“This is indeed a very important question, one of the most pressing issues of our third republic, and it should be viewed in terms of dynamics and development. Essentially, I believe that the most important current issue is the removal of conceptual and ideological boundaries between the diaspora and Armenia. Let's say a person emigrated from Armenia in 2015, are they considered part of the diaspora or not? In my understanding, they are not part of the diaspora. And what about someone who emigrated in 2001? In my opinion, they also do not qualify as part of the diaspora, and this logic continues in the same manner. People have left Armenia for various reasons. For instance, my brother left Armenia in 1996 and lived in Russia; should I now consider him a diasporic Armenian? Do you perceive your friends who do not live in Armenia as part of the diaspora, and are you developing new frameworks for relations with them?” asked the Prime Minister.

Pashinyan noted that there are various ways to achieve this, but he considers the most important approach to be that all Armenians possess an Armenian citizenship passport and accept citizenship as a minimum point. He mentioned that they should spend at least a certain amount of time living in Armenia each year.