“We are moving toward Armenia having a balanced foreign policy”: Narek Karapetyan

Narek Karapetyan, who heads the Strong Armenia party’s list, commented to journalists on the authorities’ accusations that they are allegedly a “pro-Kremlin force, puppets of Russia.”

“We are hearing this formulation for the first time. We have said more than once that Samvel Karapetyan holds a European passport, an Armenian passport and a passport of the Russian Federation. There were a great many questions about this, but he has begun the process of renouncing his foreign citizenship. He is a businessman who invests in the UAE, in the European Union and, among other places, in countries bordering Armenia. In this regard, within the Armenian domestic context, the question no longer stands that way. People have already understood everything, and we are now moving toward Armenia having a balanced foreign policy, planned tax and economic policies,” he said.

According to him, over the past 8 years Armenia’s exports to France, for example, have fallen by 20%, while trade turnover with Russia has grown several times over.

“This government has not diversified economic relations with other countries. When they came to power, the RA’s foreign trade turnover with Russia was 25%, now it is around 65%. We propose first diversifying economic relations with Western partners, with the Middle East. This government has done nothing but make marketing statements,” he concluded.