ArmInfo.Third President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan spoke about the current situation around Armenia, the prospects for resuming the negotiation process within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group, the possibilities of restoring the combat capability of the RA Armed Forces, Iran's actions, and also accused international human rights organizations of bias.
So, during a meeting with fellow party members in Tsaghkadzor, referring to the militaristic statements of Azerbaijan, Sargsyan ruled out the possibility of a new war in the region.
"I think the probability of the next war is small, especially in the foreseeable future. Some changes are possible, maybe I'm wrong, but this is my opinion. But what is happening today is not at all like peace. However, we should not despair of the existing problems in any way. We will fight. What should we do if there is no other way? "We use different methods of struggle," said the third president.
At the same time, Sargsyan is convinced that in the current situation it will be possible to find a more or less acceptable option, and if not, then the Armenian people will defend themselves. The politician also believes that negotiations within the Minsk Group will resume, and the reason for this is the decreasing toughness in the behavior of the Azerbaijani leadership. In this vein, he recalled that this format is valid, no one has canceled it.
"We all remember how Aliyev was rude to the co-chairs, saying that he doesn't care whether they come or not - in a approximately similar context. And now he declares his readiness for meetings. But this cannot be a guarantee that the Minsk Group will resolve our issue if we remain inert, if we renounce our demands, if we fail to convince people once again that the existence of the Armenians of Karabakh is impossible within Azerbaijan, "Sargsyan added.
At the same time, the third President of Armenia touched upon the prospects for the restoration of the Armenian army, stating that it is possible, but it will take a lot of time. "2-3 years is not enough, especially since our armed forces are not yet rebuilding, and my reproach does not concern the army, it concerns those persons who, in their opinion, pursue a policy of rebuilding and developing the Armed Forces, but in reality they do not know how to do it. And in general, they are miles away from all this, "the third President of the Republic of Armenia noted, recalling that 2 years is the optimal time for a recruit to become a soldier, and a soldier to become a defender of the motherland.
"When the authorities talk about a professional army, they do not understand what it is. A professional army is the absence of persons of draft age in the armed forces, but this is impossible, "Sargsyan noted, adding that it will be difficult to cover a 30-year path in the issue of army restoration in three years.
"All our military equipment is squandered, as far as I know. In any case, the published numbers are not refuted by the Ministry of Defense. This means that this is true. And the duration of the army's restoration also depends on who will restore it," said the head of the Republican Party Armenia.
At the same time, he touched upon Iran's actions in the region and expressed his conviction that, apart from military exercises, the Iranian side would not do anything else.
"I have not heard any official statement about the introduction of troops into the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia. Yes, I saw some records on the network, but there are no official statements. I very much doubt that the leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran could have made such a statement, because it is simply impossible without the invitation of the Armenian authorities. The fact that Iran is concerned about the current situation is unambiguous. And they have the right to do so, since Armenia is one of the few countries connecting Iran with the outside world. And Iran is interested in stability in Armenia, and in Armenia being ruled by national forces.
I do not think that apart from military exercises, it will come to something else. And military exercises are a normal process, "Sargsyan said. He is also convinced that the external forces that brought Armenia to the current difficult situation were not unipolar and today they have not lost their interest in Armenia, since they did not complete their business.
"And now they are closely watching which of them the capitulator will deceive. As soon as they understand that they are deceiving them, they will immediately cease to be our opponents," Sargsyan said.
The third president of Armenia also touched upon the internal political situation in the country and once again pointed out the need for a change of power.
"If there was such an attitude, then only because in Armenia alleged insults were criminalized, but in fact harsh criticism of the authorities, then numerous international bodies, starting with the Council of Europe, should have immediately responded to what was happening and showed their attitude. I'm not even talking about the arrests of MPs without the consent of parliament, about the complete subordination of the judicial system. If we did 10% of what they do, there would be about 10 statements about this. This silence suggests that they are still patient they are waiting, whether their expectations will come true or not. But we do not have so much time to wait. Because time is against us, "summed up the third president of Armenia