Republican Party Not Yet Convinced that NKR Recognition is Beneficial

The Republican Party of Armenia (HHK), being one of the pioneers of the Karabakh struggle, cannot have an anti-nationalist position in national issues, said HHK spokesperson Eduard Sharmazanov, speaking to journalists today and commenting on the bill submitted by the Heritage Party to parliament on recognizing Nagorno-Karabakh’s independence.

“When the time comes, the Republicans can convene an emergency meeting. This is a decision which must be approved by 131 in favor, and a Republican won’t vote against it,” said Sharmazanov. 

Since negotiations are still ongoing, said Sharmazanov, it’s not appropriate for Armenia’s National Assembly to recognize the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh (NKR), “because, as noted by NKR President Bako Sahakyan, steps that are an end in itself cannot be beneficial.”

According to him, his colleagues haven’t yet convinced him and his coalition partners that recognizing NKR’s independence can be useful for the international recognition of Karabakh’s independence. 

As for the voting on whether the matter should be on the National Assembly agenda or not, according to Sharmazanov, it’s likely that the Republicans won’t be participating in that vote.