300,000 jobs and strong diplomacy: Samvel Karapetyan

Strong Armenia party leader and prime ministerial candidate Samvel Karapetyan has published a message on his official Facebook page calling on the people to unite and hold onto hope.

“It is sad that the man temporarily leading this country is sowing fear and division to hold onto power. In June he will lose, because people are tired of division and the atmosphere of fear.

I promise you that as prime minister I will unite the country and make it strong with a robust economy and lasting peace. I guarantee that under my premiership, the coming September and every month after it will be peaceful. We will do more: we will set low taxes for businesses, create new jobs, and improve the quality of life. We will have stronger diplomacy and reliable defenses that deliver peace through action, not words.

On the question of lasting peace: the outgoing authorities promised peace but delivered three wars, all of which they lost. Why should anyone trust them after so many failures? Today’s leadership divides the people and wages a war of words against its own population. If they bring conflict at home, how can they be trusted with Armenia’s security? Today Armenia has only a temporary peace, fragile, without guarantors, with weak borders and weak defenses.

As prime minister, I will deliver strong and lasting peace. It will be built on powerful diplomacy, multiple security guarantors, and reliable defenses with secured borders, 10,000 drones, a protected sky, and a modernized professional army. Strong peace also requires a strong economy: new factories, 300,000 jobs, and new opportunities for business and agriculture.

The outgoing leadership is trying to convince you that this is impossible, that the only path to peace is weakness and submission to the demands of our adversaries. They insist that abandoning Armenian symbols and legitimate interests will bring peace. That is a great lie.

Our national hero Garegin Nzhdeh said: ‘To be a coward, to remain a coward, and at the same time to dream of an independent homeland — is that not absurd? Is it not absurd to be a sheep and complain about the wolf? Become a sheep, and do not be surprised when the wolf comes. Peace and independence belong to the brave, for it is the brave who walk in God’s path.’ Armenians carry these words in their hearts. It is sad to see the authorities act in defiance of them. They have lost the peace three times and still refuse to learn from their mistakes.

I call on all Armenians: do not be afraid. Do not let those who have already proven their inability to protect the country threaten you with war once again. I make one promise: together we will build lasting and strong peace with an open face,” the message reads.