Nikol Pashinyan Sends Message on Independence Day

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has sent a message on the occasion of the Independence Day of the Republic of Armenia.

“Dear people, dear citizens of the Republic of Armenia. September 21 is the Independence Day of the Republic of Armenia, and today we celebrate the 33rd anniversary of the independence of our country. On this day in 1991, an independence referendum took place in Armenia, during which citizens went to polling stations to answer the question on the ballot: ‘Do you agree that the Republic of Armenia should be an independent, democratic state outside the USSR?’ At that time, 95 percent of eligible voters answered ‘Yes’ to the question, and the Republic of Armenia became an independent state.

Since that day, our country has gone through many trials—wars, thousands of casualties, blockade, economic and political crises, and emigration. As a result, we have understood more concretely that the question posed in the 1991 referendum requires an answer every day, and we must respond to that question not only by marking on a ballot at the polling station but also through our behavior, morality, and actions.

The core mission and goal of the Government of the Republic of Armenia is to respond practically ‘Yes’ every day to the question posed in the 1991 referendum. I must state with satisfaction that our level of independence is growing day by day, thanks to democracy, balance, and a balanced foreign policy.

Since the People’s non-violent Velvet Revolution of 2018, the guiding principle of all our decisions has been and remains independence, statehood, democracy, and the specification and realization of these concepts based on international norms. In this process, we have made mistakes and have had failures, but having reached the brink of losing independence in 2020, we have received a real opportunity to put the theoretical thesis of the viability of our state on practical rails through the Real Armenia strategy.

Dear people, dear citizens of the Republic of Armenia, yesterday, today, and tomorrow is a referendum on Independence. Every day is a referendum on Independence, and each of us makes our choice every day. Every taxpayer (Yes) and tax evader (No), every honest official (Yes) and corrupt one (No), every worker (Yes) and every individual who shows disdain towards work (No), every law-abiding citizen (Yes) and anyone who considers violating the law a means of self-assertion (No) answers the question posed in the referendum every day.

I bow to those who have said ‘Yes’ and continue to say ‘Yes’ in the Independence referendum; I love and am proud of them. I also apologize for any apparent and possible mistakes we have made and, frankly speaking, will continue to make, because humans are fallible.

It is crucial not to lose sight of the key objective of Independence, statehood, and the Republic of Armenia as a platform and mechanism for ensuring the safety, freedom, and welfare of its citizens within its internationally recognized territory of 29,743 square kilometers for even a minute, not a second.

Glory to the martyrs, and long live the Republic of Armenia. Long live our children who will live in a Free and Happy Armenia. I congratulate everyone on the occasion of the Independence Day of the Republic of Armenia,” he wrote.