ARMENIA SHOULD TAKE PRAGMATIC APPROACH TO S.OSSETIA EVENTS

Interfax News Agency
Russia & CIS Presidential Bulletin
October 3, 2008
Russia

Armenia should take a pragmatic approach toward assessing the recent
events in South Ossetia, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan said in
an address to the nation.

It is more than clear today that not only do we need to clearly and
pragmatically assess the latest events but also take consistent and
far-reaching steps, Sargsyan said.

The war in South Ossetia and the events that followed it had a sobering
effect on many, he said.

The war in Nagorno-Karabakh has still not finished, Sargsyan said.

It will not be finished until the arms race is finished and until
we congratulate the presidents of Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh on
their combat capabilities and the peaceful resolution of the conflict,
he said.

Touching on economic and social issues, Sargsyan said Armenia would
start the construction of a new nuclear power plant and a railroad
connecting the country with Iran.

Sargsyan also called on all government bodies, especially the National
Security Council, to work properly and called for the public to
be involved in the decision-making process. He suggested that the
Public Council, which is to be fully put together soon, should play
an important role in this.

Nobody can resolve these issues but us. We need to be able to
eradicate corruption and to build a society in which there is no
room for corruption. There is no alternative to the restoration of
social justice. We face a lot of work in this respect to be done in
the public and private sectors. There can be no official seat for a
corruptionist, and we will apply the toughest possible measures in
fighting corruption, he said.

He also urged the opposition and the ruling party to stop accusing
each other. All this is going beyond the acceptable limits. Let’s stop.

This way leads nowhere, he said.