The position of these authorities on the Artsakh issue is clear to everyone. Now it's worth trying to neutralize that danger and go another way or not. Or should we just go into the current and say, this is what these people want us to go and do. The second president of Armenia, leader of the opposition "Armenia" Bloc Robert Kocharyan stated this during his year-end press conference Monday—and when asked whether he has at least an approximate solution to the situation of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) if we imagine for a moment that the current Armenian authorities will no longer miraculously rule the country.
"The dilemma is in this. On the one hand, it is already clear what they [i.e., the incumbent Armenian authorities] want and where they want to take us. On the other hand, we say that there are other forces that will try to change this dangerous path. Should we now do [it] or not? It’s me, it’s not me, it’s someone else. It does not matter anymore. That should be our starting point. Whether we allow do to it or not. Yes, I see an opportunity to save something in this situation thanks to active diplomatic work, I see that path. These authorities will not even try to do that because these people have thought all their conscious lives the way they do today. Expectations from them are zero. Now let's change my proposal, give a chance to those people who have shown all their lives that they think differently. Yes, I see that path. It will be very difficult, we will not get what opportunity we missed without losing. But yes, in some domains we are able to correct something about the status of Artsakh, too," Kocharyan said.
Also, the second president made a historical reference to the settlement of the Artsakh issue.
"If we compare what we got [when Kocharyan to power in Armenia] in 1998 with the legacy of negotiations and what we had [when Kocharyan ended his presidential tenure] in 2008, we will see that we had achieved serious success thanks to our consistent work during that time. Same thing now; I realize what needs to be done. I cannot say one hundred percent that yes, I will achieve this; but I see a sequence of steps whereby something can be saved. These authorities will not even try because that’s how they think; this is their conviction. Apart from their conviction, whose interests they serve. I assume there is certainly a task of serving certain interests. I'm just convinced," Kocharyan said.
