Over the past two days, we received three bits of news from the opposition field that inspire cautious optimism. The first, of course, is the unification of the “Wings of Unity” and “Hayaqve” political forces. Naturally, the government’s propagandists will now claim that Kocharyan is standing behind them and that this alliance is part of Russia’s hybrid war. But my impression is that this myth-making is likely to influence only the most confused segment of the public. It is hard to say how large that segment is, yet the general trend seems to be that hanging the “hybrid dish” on people’s ears is becoming increasingly difficult.
The second development is the decision of the “Homeland” party not to participate in the elections, so that votes would not be scattered due to unnecessary competition. Frankly, having spoken with Artur Vanetsyan back when he was in office (I had interviewed him), I was convinced that he is an officer — in the best sense of the word. The most urgent task facing our state today is to rid itself of an inadequate leader. All other alignments and realignments should be left for later.
The third positive piece of news is Serzh Sargsyan’s hint that it is still worth considering what would be more beneficial for the agenda of regime change: to fight for a few mandates, or to give a chance to forces that have real prospects of winning. Although the Republican Party has not yet made a final decision, I believe the logic itself is sound.
Naturally, not running does not mean abandoning political struggle, the essence of which cannot be reduced to a fight for mandates. Armenia is now in a state where responsible actors should not be thinking about mandates. When Aliyev’s constitution is adopted in Armenia, and the “Western Azerbaijan” project is subsequently implemented, it will no longer matter who holds how many mandates.
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… I have not yet lost hope that Robert Kocharyan will also make a responsible decision.
Aram ABRAHAMYAN
