– Mr. Giragosyan, which of the processes of Karabakh conflict settlement and developing relations with Turkey will become more intensive in the near future?
– These two processes are going in two different directions. The Karabakh conflict settlement process is in a frozen state, and the same cannot be said about the relations with Turkey. I think in the near future the OSCE MG will be activated too. The presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan will meet more often too. However it will not result in improvement of the process and mostly it is done for demonstrating improvement to the Turkish party. In other words, it is done for the purpose of making Azerbaijan shut up.
– Do you think the Turkish party will be sufficed with it only? Do you think Turkey will not look forward to improvement in the issue of Karabakh conflict settlement?
– No, will not wait. It is interesting that Armenians tend to believe in the threats of Turkish policy in case when even the Turks and Azeri don’t believe in them anymore. This process is a result of external pressure and the expectations of international community for Turkey only to make sure Turkey will not return the issue of Karabakh on the table of the Armenian-Turkish negotiations. Turkey was the one to exclude the issue of Karabakh from the protocols. It was Turkey’s decision not to link the issue of Karabakh with the relations. Turkey should not get a permission to try to bring this issue back. All pressure and threats of the international community are targeted at Turkey. If we look at the issue from another aspect to imagine better, i.e. from the aspect of football diplomacy, I should note that now we are in a more dangerous phase of football play and it is not football anymore. Now it is like American football, which is cruel, where everyone can touch the ball and where the rules are different too. It means that there can be victims and bloodshed as it often happens in the American football.
– Do you agree with the opinion that by agreeing to establish a commission of historians and compromising in this issue president Serzh Sargsyan wants to get legitimacy?
– Let’s rephrase the question. It is not a commission in charge of historical issues, it is the overall process of the Armenian-Turkish diplomacy, and Armenia is trying to benefit from it. Maybe in some phase the reason was the lack of legitimacy. But it is soon to speak of the commission of historians yet. The real test of this commission depends on the fact who the members will be, how its structure and work distribution will be. If it is success maybe Armenia will benefit from this process. If the Armenian party is wise, it may make sure that neither of the Turkish party may raise the issue of the Genocide. Or, the Armenian party should demand not to discuss the whether the Genocide took place but the grounds of the Genocide. In other words, we can develop such conditions not to harm the issue of the Genocide.
– What do you think about the recent speech of first president Levon Ter-Petrosyan?
– I would compare Ter-Petrosyan’s speech with Raffi Hovhannisyan’s announcement, in which Hovhannisyan petitioned to develop national dialogue to solve the problem of going out of the crisis. Ter-Petrosyan’s announcement was more like giving a hand. I think it is time for all political powers to develop dialogue. But for this purpose all the parties should step forward but not the opposition only. Unfortunately I am not sure that we have reached this point.
– Many people said it was a speech of a person who was going to give up on politics and did not hope for the votes of people.
– I don’t think we should listen to them. It is clear that it was not about leaving politics. I respect both the former and incumbent president, but the decisive vote is the people’s vote. Unfortunately no one listens to that voice. Those who are ignoring the vote of the Armenian people, will be faced with a danger of losing their positions. The Armenian people did not go to sleep starting from March 1. Even though they don’t speak with one common voice, I believe the echo of their voice can go too far now.