Parliamentarian: agenda of new Constitution has nothing to do with  Armenian people`s agenda

ArmInfo.The main goal of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan when deciding on a new Constitution is to strengthen his own power and satisfy the demands of Azerbaijan.  A similar point of view is shared by the member of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia from the "Armenia" opposition faction Kristine Vardanyan.

In a conversation with an ArmInfo correspondent, she noted to that in  the current situation, when the country faces serious problems  related to security, social and economic problems, raising the issue  of developing and adopting a new Constitution is not only untimely,  but also fraught with risks. The current Constitution in this entire  process, the MP noted, has nothing to do with these problems. "The  agenda of the new Constitution has nothing to do with the agenda of  the Armenian people, it is the agenda exclusively of Nikol Pashinyan  and his political team represented by the Civil Contract party, and  is aimed at solving two problems - strengthening their own power and  satisfying the demands of Baku," the parliamentarian said She pointed  out the direct connection of the declared initiative of the Armenian  prime minister with the process of normalizing relations with  Azerbaijan. Vardanyan mentioned that in his speech at the RA Ministry  of Justice, Pashinyan meant the Constitution as a whole, rather than  the constitutional reforms related to changes in one or another  article of the country's Basic Law. 

"We all remember the demands of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to  revise the provisions of the Constitution of Armenia, which, in his  opinion, contains provisions relating to the territorial integrity of  this state. Vardanyan noted that Baku has always pointed to the  reference to the Declaration of Independence in the Basic Law of  Armenia, where Nagorno Karabakh is mentioned. In particular, the  preamble of the current Constitution contains a reference in which  the republic is proclaimed, "aware of its responsibility for the fate  of the Armenian people in realizing the aspirations of all Armenians  and restoring historical justice, implementing the right of nations  to free self-determination, based on the joint resolution of the  Supreme Council of the Armenian SSR and the National Council of  Nagorno-Karabakh dated December 1, 1989 "On the reunification of the  Armenian SSR and Nagorno-Karabakh." "Actually, this fact was  recognized by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of  Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan, who confirmed that in the negotiation  process Baku constantly raised and is raising this issue," the MP  noted.  She added that the authorities do not like the article of the  Basic Law of the country, in which the Republic of Armenia recognizes  "the unique mission of the Armenian Apostolic Church as a national  church in the spiritual life of the Armenian people, in the  development of their national culture and the preservation of their  national identity." No less problematic for Pashinyan is the article  of the RA Constitution, which talks about the symbols of the Republic  of Armenia.

Answering the question that not only Azerbaijan, but also Turkey  directly expresses claims to the provisions of the country's current  Constitution, Vardanyan recalled that the Declaration of Independence  contains a provision according to which the Republic of Armenia  supports international recognition of the Armenian Genocide of 1915  in Ottoman Turkey. Thus, as the parliamentarian noted, the  authorities have two tasks in the matter of the new Constitution -  strengthening their own power and satisfying the demands of  neighboring states.

Earlier, RA Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said in an interview  with the RFE/RL's Armenian service , said that Azerbaijan considers  the reference in the Constitution of the republic to the Declaration  of Independence, which mentions Nagorno-Karabakh, problematic.

"They raised this issue, they said that, yes, this is a problem, they  presented legal problems, and accordingly, we, in our turn,  considered their formulations to be problematic," Mirzoyan said. At  the same time, he stated that Baku did not put forward demands on the  issue of the Constitution of Armenia in the draft peace agreement  between Armenia and Azerbaijan. "There is no provision on the  Constitution of Armenia in the draft peace agreement. Yes, the  parties see each other's legal problems in the general peace process  and give explanations. There will be more such discussions. As for  our Constitution, in addition to solving internal issues, it has a  broader scope significance and can influence regional relations and  relations between Armenia and the world. But there are no  requirements or text regarding part of the Constitution in the draft  peace agreement," the head of the Armenian Foreign Ministry noted.

On January 19, Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan announced  the need to adopt a new Constitution. "The Republic of Armenia needs  a new Constitution. Not constitutional changes, but a new  Constitution. We must have a Constitution that will make the republic  more competitive and more viable in new geopolitical and regional  conditions," Pashinyan said.

In turn, back in 2021, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev announced  the need to rewrite the Constitution of Armenia. In an interview with  the Turkish Anadolu Agency, as he said "the text of the Basic Law of  the neighboring country "contains references to territorial claims"  to Baku and Ankara." "Let Armenia correctly perceive the newly formed  reality, take steps in accordance with this reality, look at the map  and find itself there, if, of course, it can," Aliyev said.