‘Ice Is Melting’: Sarkisian, Tsarukyan Meet

YEREVAN (A.W.)—On Feb. 17, a meeting took place between Armenian President Serge Sarkisian and Prosperous Armenia Party (PAP) leader Gagik Tsarukyan. Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutyun (ARF-D) Member of Parliament Aghvan Vardanyan told CivilNet that the ARF-D has done everything in its power to find a solution to the recent escalation in tensions between the two parties, in order to ensure that the country is not faced with major consequences.

Vardanyan refused to comment on the outcome of the meeting and told reporters that each side will release its own statement soon.

Armen Rustamyan
Armen Rustamyan

Following the meeting, ARF Bureau member Armen Rustamyan told 168.am., “We have continuously said that sharp edges need to be smoothed out, that we are on the side of improving relations, and that we have exerted our humble efforts in that regard. We are pleased that the meeting has finally taken place, that communication is advancing, and that the ice is melting,”

The meeting comes in the wake of rising tensions  between the ruling regime and the PAP. Sarkisian criticized Tsarukyan at a Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) Council meeting on Feb. 12. After a session of the Executive Council of the PAP the following day, Tsarukyan responded to Sarkisian’s criticisms and called on the citizens of Armenia to “prepare for struggle.”

Several members of PAP were arrested last night. Officers raided the home of Parliament member (MP) Rustam Gasparyan and conducted a thorough search, according to reports.

President Sarkisian and Gagik Tsarukyan (Photo: Slaq.am)
President Sarkisian and Gagik Tsarukyan (Photo: Slaq.am)

According to PAP MP Elinar Vartanyan, the Arabkir, Maralik, and Shengavit district office directors of the party have also been arrested, as has Artur Mamoyan, the Nor Nork district PAP office director, on suspicion of carrying an unlicensed firearm.

Rustamyan voiced his belief that the recent political tensions have entered a new and dangerous stage and can have irreversible repercussions for the country. “We could lose everything,” said Rustamyan, in a recent interview, citing that the battle between the PAP and the RPA confirm the ARF-D’s grave concerns about the political landscape of the country.

Rustamyan had also confirmed that the ARF-D has been working hard to bring together the two sides and broker an agreement. “Although I will not give details about our efforts, I can say that we have been using our contacts and hope to succeed,” Rustamyan told Yerkir.am.

The ARF-D is steadfast in its belief that constitutional reforms are needed in the country. However, political conflicts and snap elections will not solve the issue, according to Rustamyan. He believes the only way conditions will change is if all sides come to the table and discuss the issue of constitutional and electoral reform. “We should make our demands clear to the regime. If there is unity in our demands, then the authorities will not have any reason to deny us,” said Rustamyan.

On Jan. 15, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly and member of the RPA announced that his party is ready to discuss the ARF-D’s proposals for constitutional reforms. “I have examined the proposals, and I must say that the ARF-D did serious work. There are proposals that I agree with, and there are proposals that can become a topic for discussion. There might be proposals that the RPA won’t agree with, but the fact remains that the [they] are written by professionals…in which the interests of the state are placed above the interests of political parties,” Sharmazanov explained.

According to Sharmazanov, the proposed constitutional reforms are very important and worthy of consideration. “In this sense, I think the Dashnaktsutyun’s proposals are worth discussing. Of course, there are issues on which the RPA has its own views, but they are issues that can be discussed. I’m certain that we can solve all those issues through discussions,” he added.

Rustamyan explained that the ARF-D is not getting ready to join a coalition with the RPA after President Sarkisian’s withdrawal of the Turkey-Armenia protocols from Parliament. According to Rustamyan, the recalling of the protocols was just one of seven demands the ARF-D has presented to the government. “If there are real steps taken towards the realization of those seven points, then we [the ARF-D] is ready to co-operate with anyone ready to work with us, said Rustamyan. He also urged members of all parties to join the ARF-D when they sit at the bargaining table with authorities.

Rupen Janbazian

Rupen Janbazian

Rupen Janbazian is the editor of Torontohye Monthly. He is the former editor of The Armenian Weekly and the former director of public relations of the Tufenkian Foundation. Born and raised in Toronto, he is currently based in Yerevan.
Rupen Janbazian

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13 Comments

  1. Two mafioso meeting to divide up the booty.
    In the meantime:
    1. Economic turmoil
    2. Being gobbled up by the new CCCP
    3. Battling Azeri aggression
    4. Fighting for Genocide recognition
    5. Losing the media campaign against the Turks
    6. Emigrating to four corners of the world
    7. Assimilating into foreign cultures
    8. Losing communities in the Middle East
    9. Losing members from the national church

    • Are you talking about your gangster Sultan Aliyev and his Crime Syndicate members, Turkoglu?

      Worry about your own oil-contaminated Baku Khanate, nomad.
      With oil running out, and price going to $40, your kin will have to revert back to their traditional livelihood: herding sheep for meat and wool.

      btw, Uyguroglu: which Turkic tribe do you hail from, the White Sheep (Ağ Qoyunlu) or Black Sheep (Kara Koyunlu) nomads ?

    • This just in: fake country Azerbaijan’s fake currency manat was devalued by 30%-35% in one day.
      Ouch.
      Store shelves were quickly emptied out as desperate Azerbaijani residents loaded up on groceries in anticipation of massive price increases.
      Currency exchangers ran out of dollars and Euros as destitute Baku residents hoarded real currencies of real countries.
      Quick, nomadoglu: send some dollars to your kin in Baku so they can buy food and sheep.

      The prices of sheep have shot up in anticipation of the end of free money that _was_ gushing from the Caspian sea.
      New courses have been introduced in so-called ‘universities’* of Azerbaijan:
      Sheeps 101: “Starting your sheep herd from scratch”.
      Sheeps 201: “Advanced sheep breeding and herding. Using GPS tracking and drones”.
      Sheeps 301: “Finding and selecting genuine heirloom Ağ Qoyunlu or Kara Koyunlu stock”
      Advanced Sheeps 401: “Going back to our nomadic roots: herding sheep for fun, profit, and companionsheep** ”.

      Word from Baku Khanate is that the courses are booked solid.

      —-
      * Here is one product of Azerbaijani ‘Universities’, a PhD, no less
      [‘Azerbaijani scientist doubted that the Earth revolves around its axis’.
      Azerbaijani scientist Ekrem Hasanov doubted that the Earth revolves around its own axis. Employee of the National Academy of Sciences of Azerbaijan (ANAS) wrote on his page on the social network Facebook, that the Earth cannot revolve around its axis and in proof of his words stated the fact that in such northern countries like Norway sun does not go down for months, writes the Azerbaijani news portal “Haqqin.az.”
      “It turns out that in these countries the earth does not rotate around its axis for 6 months?” asks the young scientist whose PhD is already approved the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences of Azerbaijan, the article reads.] (Haqqin.az 2015-2-20)

      Note that the date is not a misprint: it is not 1015-2-20: this Azerbaijani ‘scientist’ wrote that in the year 2015.

      ** nomad spelling of ‘companionship’

  2. Our leaders should agree of their disagreements. They should not wait outsiders to dictate when there is no unity between them.
    I hope, they can work out a system of government that shift the country to the civilized vector.

  3. Avery (totally diverting from the topic of this piece) I like your accurate characterisation of the “‘Republic’ of ‘Azerbaijan'” as Baku Khanate and “president” Aliev as Sultan Aliev.
    However can we also agree (everyone please) to stop referring to the people/nation as “Azerbaijani” since this is a fake or stolen name and could be hurtful or offensive to Iranian patriots (as we know the only/real Azerbaijan is the province located in south-western Iran, south of Arax River whose residents can correctly be described as Azerbaijani. Azerbaijan has been the historic name of this province of Iran for millennia).
    Now what to call the residents of the fake “Azerbaijan”/Baku Khanate? In my view the most accurate name for the residents of this fake entity is “Alieivstani”, “AXerbaijani” or “residents of Alievstan”. With the same token “Alievstan”, and perhaps a little less commonly “AXerbaijan” could be alternatives to Baku Khanate.
    Hope this is helpful.

    • Bagratuni:

      You make many good points. I accept your input without reservations.
      I generally use the term ‘Turkbaijani/Turkbaijan’ (which I first coined some time ago on the pages of AW.)
      I also like ‘Axerbaijan’ that Armenian poster [Sella] coined a while ago, again on the pages of AW.

      Sometimes I use ‘Azerbaijani’, because I don’t like to use the fake ethnos name ‘Azeri’ (….to mean a resident of the state, like a ‘Singaporean’ vs ‘Chinese’ vs ‘Malay’).
      The other name sometimes used to describe people who were formerly called ‘Tatars’ or simply ‘Muslims’ is ‘Caucasus Turks’, but it is a bit unwieldy. Maybe CTs ? CauTurks ?
      And I differentiate the real Iranian name from the fake name by using ‘Azarbaijan’, because that’s how I have seen it spelled when describing the Northern Iranian provinces by Iranians themselves:
      http://www.iranchamber.com/provinces/08_east_azarbaijan/08_east_azarbaijan.php

      ‘Aliyevistani’ sounds good, but problem is the Aliyev clan is of Kurdish origin: they are not Turks.
      So not sure how descriptive that would be.

      I will make an effort to use Turkbaijan mostly, but sometimes because of context, need to hold my nose and use ‘Azerbaijan’, because unfortunately the official name of the fake state is ‘Azerbaijan’.

      Regarding “diverting from topic”: there is a method to my madness.
      When Turk or Turkbaijani posters posting under Armenian names go off topic and start ragging on Armenia and Armenians, it cannot remain unchallenged.
      And as I have noted numerous times before: ArmenianWeekly moderators decide what is and what isn’t off or on topic: as long as they are OK, I am good to go.

      Best regards.

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