LEVON TER-PETROSIAN WILL GIVE UP POLITICS AND LEAVE ARMENIA, GALUST
SAHAKIAN SAYS

YEREVAN, MAY 8, NOYAN TAPAN. Levon Ter-Petrosian is going to give up
politics and leave the country, the deputy chairman of the Republican
Party of Armenia (RPA), National Assembly deputy Galust Sahakian
expressed an opinion at the May 8 press conference. In his words, the
processes related to the first president are artificial and cannot last
long. "The man had a task, he failed to carry out it completely and he
will gradually leave the political field," the RPA member said. He
reminded that as early as prior to the nomination of presidential
candidates, he had said that L. Ter-Petrosian would not succeed and he
would quit Armenia, which the first president now intends to do.

According to G. Sahakian, L. Ter-Petrosian’s speech at the 2nd congress
of the National Movement was a "retreat" as compared with his previous
statements. In his opinion, the fact that for the first time L.
Ter-Petrosian publicly stated the possibility of a dialog with the
authorities shows that he repents. G. Sahakian said L. Ter-Petrosian is
the main and only person responsible for the March 1 events, and "the
ruse" is that he was not present at the scene and so cannot be
subjected to criminal responsibility.

G. Sahakian stated that he is not in favor of dialog with L.
Ter-Petrosian. According to him, the first Armenian president said that
the current authorities should leave power and that the relations with
Azerbaijan should be improved by returning Karabakh to it. "I do not
think that there can be a dialog on these two subjects," G. Sahakian
said.