Armenia’s third President Serzh Sargsyan issued a congratulatory message on Republic Day celebrated on May 28. His full message is below.

"I congratulate all our compatriots in Armenia, Artsakh, and Spyurk for whom freedom and independence of our Fatherland, the undying memory of our courageous ancestors, who gave their lives for our independent statehood, are above everything else.

I congratulate all those who cherish our national spiritual and cultural values, our language and history, all those who even today, more than one hundred years after the glorious May victories achieved on the battlefields, are ready to protect these values and pass them on to new generations.

On this day in May of 1918, the devoted sons of the Armenian nation at the highest level of the national awareness and historic responsibility, through their selfless and dedicated courage had attained the right to live free and independent in their Homeland.

Eternal glory to all Armenian soldiers, military commanders, servicemen, representatives of the clergy and all those devotees, who led and brought to brilliant victories in May battles, who decided to live with dignity and not submit to the aliens. We bow to the memory of our heroic ancestors.

For our nation, which had appeared on the brink of despair and extinction, the May victories became a new opportunity to live, to create and to achieve pan-national goals.

Painfully, today our nation faces the same dilemma: to defend with our lives our own land, our homes under the enemy’s daily threat, our spiritual and cultural heritage under the threat of demolishment and desecration, our children’s future, or to kneel before our enemy, trusting in its and its Armenian cronies false and dangerous assurances about opening an era of peace?

The worthy and dignified sons and daughters of our nations have made their choice, and I wish them every success in their relentless mission to fight against the internal and external enemies.

Eternal glory to the sons of our nation who created May 28!

Long live all devotees of our Fatherland who through new victories will create the powerful, dignified, free, and independent Fatherland of tomorrow!"