YEREVAN—On Nov. 20, Yerkir Media reported that the Armenia-Turkey protocols were submitted by President Serge Sarkisian’s office to the Armenian Constitutional Court earlier that week, according to the court’s chief of staff, Aroushan Hakopyan.
A full court session must be convened within 20 days to determine a hearing date for the protocols, Hakopian explained. If within the 20-day time frame a consensus is not reached, the decision to convene a hearing will be extended by an additional 10 days. If a month passes from the time of submission and a decision is not reached, the protocols must be returned to the president’s office or the court must decide on further discussions.
The same full court is also tasked with ruling on the constitutionality of the protocols, added Hakopian. She was unable to say whether the hearings would be closed or open to the public.
The ruling Republican Party parliamentary bloc chairman, Galust Sahakian, said he was unaware of the protocols’ submission to the court. Asked by the press whether it is possible that the protocols had not been submitted, Sahakian told reporters that Armenia would be advancing the ratification process through an already-announced approach; that approach, he said, was for the Turkish Parliament to ratify the documents first.
Sahakian explained that the border could not be opened by Armenia’s ratification alone.
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