Macron Invited Pashinyan Not Now, But in October: Papazyan

French President Emmanuel Macron invited the Prime Minister to Paris in October, after the elections, as political ethics do not allow giving an advantage to one of the candidates during the pre-election period by showing attention towards them, said Murad Papazyan, a member of the ARF Bureau and president of the Council of Armenian Organizations of France, in an interview with Yerkir.am.

“Pashinyan insists that he wants to visit Paris not in October, as Macron invited, but now. ‘This is political begging,’ said Murad Papazyan, assuring that Pashinyan merely wants to take a photo with Macron.

He noted that, since they have done significant work and France is pro-Armenian, it is not difficult for any leader of Armenia to request a meeting and receive it from the President of France. However, Pashinyan’s unprincipled political stance complicates the work of the ARF Armenian Cause Committees.

As an example of such a problem, Murad Papazyan pointed out that during the last war, the Armenian community of France did significant work among various organizations and politicians to create public opinion in favor of the independence of Artsakh. Many institutions signed resolutions calling on France to recognize the independence of the Republic of Artsakh. But, in the end, they realized that Armenia has no conceptual framework in this direction.

“When the Senate and the National Assembly's resolutions were adopted, the French Foreign Minister said, 'I don't understand why you are demanding France to recognize the independence of Artsakh if the Prime Minister of Armenia himself has not requested that France recognize it. Why should we recognize it? Why are you doing this work abroad when you are not being approached from within… yes, it is a problem,' said Murad Papazyan.