“The headline was manipulative and taken out of context, this is not the position of the ‘Armenia’ bloc”: Grigoryan on the Crimea interview

Anna Grigoryan, MP from the “Armenia” faction, addressed her earlier interview, which caused a stir, at a press conference, saying that both the initial claims and the conclusions drawn from it were mistaken.

“Thank you for the question, because I know that this headline caused a big stir. I am talking not about my statement but specifically about the headline, because it did not reflect what I said in the interview: it was taken out of context and manipulative. Fortunately, Factor TV later changed the headline to ‘Republic of Armenia,’ and that is a fact,” she said.

Turning to the substance of the question, the status of Crimea and the opposition bloc’s position on it, she clarified that she had merely stated the state’s official approach.

“The Republic of Armenia has not officially recognized Crimea as part of Russia. I presented this as a fact, as the position of the Republic of Armenia. Of course, it was presented there as if it were the position of the ‘Armenia’ bloc. But it is not the position of the ‘Armenia’ bloc. I was speaking about the state position of the Republic of Armenia. I repeat, I am simply stating reality,” Grigoryan stressed.

Asked what the bloc’s actual view on this geopolitical issue is, Anna Grigoryan referred to the words of Armenia’s second president.

“I can say the following: in this context, you can simply read the well-known 2016 interview with Robert Kocharyan, in which he clearly formulates his position on this issue. Frankly, in recent years we have had many discussions, mostly about the territorial integrity of Armenia and the possibilities of restoring it, and we have not had many opportunities to address other geopolitical centers. But I repeat, if you are interested, I suggest opening one of Robert Kocharyan’s well-known interviews from 2016, where he touches on this issue,” the MP said.

In conclusion, Grigoryan stressed once again that what was said in the interview was in fact the official position of the Republic of Armenia, and that stating it should not have raised any new questions or disagreements.