Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the RA Raffi Yovhannisian issued a statement entitled “Stand up, Armenia”, which we present below.
“And the unimaginable became a reality, but what we have been sounding the alarm about for months. It was obvious that under the continued rule of the defeated supreme leader, the Motherland will gradually, by voluntary conspiracy, hand over piece by piece, hill by hill, line by line. The state will permanently give up its sovereignty, and the golden generation of our country will give the next martyrs for the inglorious continuation of that criminal chair-worshipper.
The Armenia-Artsakh road of life, opened by Pan-Armenian effort and spirit, including Berdzor, Aghavno river and village, became history with the testimony, participation, dedication and hand of our own generation. We are one more step closer to returning to the previous state of blockade of Artsakh. As long as the ex-pilgrim commander remains as a barbarian who blocks the way of modern Armenian history and the normal course of the Armenian people, the state and the nation will not have any hope or possibility of salvation. It is a sad, even tragic comparison, but it is either himself or the Motherland. My brother is sad, but it seems that his family and party members (at least the ones I know) chose him against the Motherland based on the seat, money, and other related factors. Similarly, state-owned bodies, neglecting their constitutional duties, protect the safety of a certain official and not the constitutional order of the Republic and the rights of citizens. There is little time left to look for a way out of revision and atonement. This path of repentance and remorse applies equally to former authorities. Today’s stop, however, is imperative for all of us. We need to get out of our inner disappointment, indifference, malice, distress, fear and fatalism together. We need to get out of the territory of good intentions of individual fronts and movements. We must once again rely on a united approach with creative, valuable and targeted Armenian-centered solutions. Together we should choose the Motherland, not rejecting anyone, except the native rejecter. His sovereignty, integrity, and dignity are non-negotiable. And unbreakable. Stand up, Armenia.”