Armenian opposition calls for new elections

Interfax
Nov 23 2004

YEREVAN. Nov 23 (Interfax) – The foreign policy pursued by the
authorities, in particular in resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,
has brought Armenia nothing but repeated failures, Viktor Dallakian,
secretary of the Justice opposition bloc, said at parliament on
Tuesday.

“In the years of Robert Kocharian’s presidency, the conflict, which
used to be an issue of national self-determination, has become a
territorial dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and Karabakh
itself has ceased to be an actor and become an issue in negotiations,”
he said.

Replacing the leadership through democratic elections is the sole
way to resolve the situation, Dallakian said.

Alexan Karapetian of National Unity, another parliamentary opposition
party, demanded that “the authorities disclose to the public what
is going on in negotiations over the Karabakh settlement.” He also
complained that “the priorities of Armenian foreign policy have never
been announced and there is no national security concept.”

Azerbaijan recently succeeded in having international organizations
adopt resolutions declaring Armenia the aggressor in the conflict
over Nagorno-Karabakh.