Opposition Doesn't Know What to Do: Trump Advocates for Dialogue with Russia, Karapetyan

President Donald Trump's foreign policy does not fuel our age-old political narrative that we need a savior. This has already had a significant influence on our political discussions. The ideas of searching for a 'new Russia' in the West have visibly decreased. This is very beneficial for standing on our own feet. This was stated by Maria Karapetyan, a member of the 'Civil Contract' faction in the National Assembly of Armenia.

“Even those who advocate for a 'turn to Russia' are dismantling their previous civilizational theses. Previously, that thesis was that we are civilizationally incompatible with our region, which centuries ago was conquered by Eastern peoples. Now they have 'discovered' that Turkey is part of the West. In both theses, the goal is the same: to justify that Russia is a fate. However, such a sharp turn creates a collapse of the approach to having a political destiny, thereby opening space for foreign policy. This is also very good for standing on our own feet.

Finally, our opposition does not know what to do with the fact that President Trump supports dialogue with Russia rather than confrontation. This is not at all helpful for predicting an impending confrontation in the South Caucasus. Hence arises the idea (of course not in Armenia) of 'finding a way to negotiate at the expense of Armenia.' This is the origin of the idea of using Russia as a guarantor. To stand on our own feet, we must first rely on our own thoughts, and clearly, our opposition lacks such thoughts.”