Proposal Regarding Meghri Came from Aliyev but Did Not Receive Official Formulation – Robert Kocharian

The second President of Armenia, Robert Kocharian, met with residents of the Erebuni community in Yerevan. "Every election is a moment for the government to present its achievements, what results it has achieved, how much people's lives have improved, and how security issues in the country have been addressed. For the opposition, this is the moment to point out the mistakes of the authorities and convince the public to make the right choice," stated Robert Kocharian, leader of the 'Armenia' alliance.

"How can this government convince people that their lives have improved, that the country is more secure, and that the economy is developing? In reality, all indicators in our country have declined, except for two: the level of poverty has increased, and the number of graves has grown. I am sure you all had great hopes. What is this government doing now? They are trying to apply various tricks to smear the opponent. When someone has nothing to say, this becomes their only tool," the former president noted.

Meanwhile, Vahe Hakobyan, president of the 'Reviving Armenia' party, added that in just two days, the campaign will start, and it is essential to mobilize all resources to prove that the overwhelming majority of the population of Armenia are conscious individuals.

Among the questions directed at Robert Kocharian was the notorious thesis of “giving Meghri,” which has circulated for years. "There has been no official proposal on the Meghri issue from the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group at all. During my presidency, I received three proposals: one was about creating a joint state, another was related to the Key West process, which Heydar Aliyev did not sign at the last moment, and the last one was the so-called Madrid Principles. No other official proposal was made. The exchange proposal regarding Meghri came from Aliyev. Therefore, I am very cautious about the term 'corridor' because their goals are much broader than what may seem at first glance. The proposal originated from Aliyev, but it did not receive official formulation because our response was the following: we cannot lose the border with Iran. This was a very clear and convincing answer. However, he nonetheless tried to promote this idea through intermediaries, but within the framework of the Minsk Group, this has not become a subject of discussion.

Now they are trying to link the Meghri issue with October 27, claiming that Vazgen Sargsyan and Karen Demirchyan were sharply opposed to it. The issue was never discussed at a meeting of the Security Council. If they were opposed, it seems that after them, this proposal should have come to fruition. But it completely disappeared. There is no logic in this," said Robert Kocharian.