Nikol Pashinyan's Address on the Occasion of the Republic of Armenia's Independence Day

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan delivered a congratulatory address on the occasion of the 34th anniversary of the Republic of Armenia's independence, stating: “Having gone through suffering and sacrifices, today, here we are at this point, and this is what the agenda for the establishment of the Fourth Republic is about: never letting go of the opportunity to realize our dream.”

In the Prime Minister's address, he said:

“Dear people, beloved citizens of the Republic of Armenia,

Today we celebrate the 34th anniversary of the Republic of Armenia's independence. On September 21, 1991, a referendum was held with the question: ‘Do you agree that the Republic of Armenia should be an independent democratic state outside of the USSR?’ and 94% of our people, the voters, responded ‘yes,’ thereby establishing the Third Republic of Armenia.

What were the citizens who participated in the referendum and answered ‘yes’ to independence dreaming of at the moment of their vote? There is no such statistic, but it is clear that our compatriots were driven by a natural urge to build a free, peaceful, prosperous, and happy state. Unfortunately, the life of the Third Republic did not unfold that way; the blockade, war, economic decline, and emigration prevented the dream of independence from becoming a reality. Yet, even in the most difficult and tragic days that the Third Republic experienced, that dream, though dimmed, never extinguished in the eyes, minds, and hearts of our citizens.

With the peace established on August 8, 2025, that dream has once again filled the Republic of Armenia, and it is our duty to first cherish it and then make it a reality.

Having gone through suffering and sacrifices, today, here we are at this point, and this is what the agenda for the establishment of the Fourth Republic is about: never letting go of the opportunity to realize our dream.

An independent, sovereign, democratic, peaceful, protected, developed, free, and happy Armenia awaits our care like a newborn child. And we, all of us, dear people, beloved citizens of the Republic of Armenia, must parent it. We must parent ourselves, understanding that in the first quarter of the 21st century, the helm of our fate is truly in our hands, and we must never let go of that helm.

Dear people, beloved citizens of the Republic of Armenia, I congratulate everyone on the occasion of the Independence Day of the Republic of Armenia.

Glory to the martyrs, long live the Republic of Armenia!”