ARMENIA: FOREIGN MINISTER DISMISSES CALLS FOR RESIGNATION

EurasiaNet
July 21 2009
NY

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian is rejecting calls for
his resignation in response to recent allegations that he made weighty
concessions in ongoing talks concerning the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh
territory.

Government critics, most notably the nationalist Armenian Revolutionary
Federation (Dashnaktsutiun), claim that Nalbandian compromised
Armenia’s strategic interests in the recent discussions. Part of the
criticism is connected to speculation about the so-called "road map"
to reconciliation between Armenia and Turkey, Azerbaijan’s closest
ally. Details about the document have not been released, but the
Armenian Revolutionary Federation left President Serzh Sargsyan’s
government in protest at the Turkish rapprochement policy. [For
background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

At a July 20 news conference, Nalbandian fired back at his critics,
saying that they were confusing constructiveness with weakness. Denying
the charge that Armenia will weaken its hold on Karabakh in exchange
for better ties with Turkey, he called his opponents "naive" and
self-serving. "Speculating on the Karabakh problem — a matter of
national security — is not a worthy business," the Arminfo news
agency quoted Nalbandian as saying.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress