Serzh Sargsyan Discussed a Sequential Approach: Ruben Rubinyan Responds to Published Document

Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Ruben Rubinyan reacted to the publication by the office of Armenia's third president regarding the document containing proposals presented by the OSCE Minsk Group for the peaceful resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in 2016.

In his speech at the National Assembly, Rubinyan noted that the office of the third president is trying to justify that they negotiated the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict through a package approach, whereas the reality has been different. He stated, "And how does Serzh Sargsyan’s office justify that they did not actually negotiate a sequential option? They published a document from 2016, which clearly states at the top that this document pertains to the first phase of conflict resolution and subsequent steps; however, they provide justification that since it is written in that text that solutions or steps are included in one package and cannot be separated from each other, it is therefore a package document."

The Deputy Speaker characterized the publication from Sargsyan's office as a trick. "Even before the 2018 revolution, on several occasions, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov spoke about a phased approach in the conflict resolution process. In response, Armenia’s Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian repeatedly stated that, you know, a phased solution is being discussed with package implementation, which is itself a strange assertion," Rubinyan added.

According to the Deputy Speaker, Nalbandian’s claim could only be logical if the parties reached a decision regarding the resolution of the conflict through a packaged phased solution or if there were plans for a packaged phased solution regarding all components of the conflict.

Rubinyan insisted that the document did not clarify the status of Artsakh, nor did it specify when, where, and with whom a referendum on Artsakh's final status would take place. "In other words, we are dealing with the direct opposite of a packaged solution. When there is a solution option that does not describe how the central, cornerstone issue of the conflict will be resolved, when it will be resolved, by whom it will be resolved, through what means it will be resolved, and how this solution will be implemented. Therefore, Serzh Sargsyan discussed a purely sequential option. Once again, I emphasize that a packaged option means either all issues are resolved at once as a package, or at least an agreement is reached on the resolution of all issues as a package, but it is divided into phases. The option proposed in 2016 fits neither of these cases because, I repeat, the 2016 option did not clarify when the referendum determining the final status of Artsakh would take place, where that referendum would occur, who would participate in that referendum, what question would be put to the referendum, and so on," concluded Rubinyan.