Turkey Aims to Cut Armenia off from its Main Lifeline: Diaspora, Says Hakhikyan

Expert on interethnic conflicts Nairi Hakhikyan has made a statement regarding Armenia's relationship with Turkey.

“Whether it’s Nikol Pashinyan, Serzh Sargsyan, Robert Kocharyan, Levon Ter-Petrosyan, or anyone else, no one has the right to make unilateral decisions regarding the construction of relations with Turkey. It is an extremely complicated and dangerous process that could be more destructive than signing a deal with the enemy over Artsakh,” he stated.

“I have emphasized several times that Turkey aims to cut Armenia off from its main lifeline: the Diaspora. It would be wise for Armenia’s leadership to formally mandate the Diaspora within the Armenian parliament. The ten to fifteen most populous Armenian Diaspora communities should have guaranteed seats in the National Assembly, with equal rights as representatives, and at least 30% of the ministers in the government should be from the Diaspora, while at least one deputy minister must definitely be from the Diaspora.”

“This is the only effective format for the involvement of the Diaspora in the development and governance of the Armenian state, rather than asking for money once a year from the Diaspora. This is also the only format to thwart the enemy's plans and to unify the strength of all Armenians for a strong Armenian state,” he added.