President Serzh Sarkisian on Monday all but ruled out the possibility of
starting a dialogue with his political opponents led by Levon Ter-Petrosian and
said his governing coalition is broad-based enough to successfully meet
challenges facing Armenia.

Sarkisian also downplayed criticism of his overtures to Turkey which was voiced
recently by his predecessor Robert Kocharian.

The United States, the European Union and other international bodies have
repeatedly called for a dialogue between the Armenian authorities and the
Ter-Petrosian-led opposition since last February’s disputed presidential
election and its bloody aftermath. Sarkisian himself sought to reach out to his
bitter opponents just days after his controversial election win. His prime
minister, Tigran Sarkisian, stated earlier this month that the offer “remains in
force.”

“When I speak of a dialogue, I mean a dialogue with the people,” President
Sarkisian clarified at his first news conference since his April 9 inauguration.
“I mean a dialogue within the public, I mean a dialogue between the state and
the public, rather than a dialogue between the president of the republic and
some individual.”

“What should our dialogue be about?” he said, referring to the opposition. “If
those people’s demand and goal is new elections, what should we talk about?
About when to hold those elections?

“I am already tired of elections. We have held more than one election within a
short period, and I think the next national elections will be in four years from
now.”

Ter-Petrosian and his Popular Movement alliance refuse to recognize the
legitimacy of Sarkisian’s victory in what they consider a rigged election and
demand a re-run of the February 19 ballot. Ter-Petrosian has said at the same
time he will be ready to negotiate with Sarkisian if the authorities release
dozens of opposition members supporters arrested before and after the March 1
unrest in Yerevan.

Sarkisian claimed that he has no authority to free individuals considered as
political prisoners by the opposition and human rights groups. “I’m not used to
working like that,” he said. “It’s a very bad temptation because freeing dozens
of persons with one phone call would also mean being able to jail dozens of
people with one phone call.”

An aide to Ter-Petrosian scoffed at this argument, insisting that Sarkisian
tightly controls Armenia’s security apparatus and courts. “Does that mean they
can jail people with one phone call but when it comes to freeing them they are
powerless?” said Levon Zurabian.

Zurabian also portrayed Sarkisian’s remarks as a further indication that the
authorities were never serious about negotiating with the opposition. “This is
primitive demagoguery with which Serzh Sarkisian publicly acknowledged that he
has no plans for a dialogue with the opposition,” he told RFE/RL.

The Ter-Petrosian camp has given Sarkisian until August 1 to release all
“political prisoners” and meet other opposition demands or face the possibility
of a renewed opposition campaign of non-stop street protests.

Sarkisian indicated that he is strong enough to face fresh opposition challenges
to his rule, pointing to his four-party coalition and its members’ strong
electoral performances. “And after all, I rely on the Republican Party, which is
the largest in Armenia and has a majority in parliament,” he said. “Can there be
anything more influential?”

Sarkisian also declined to hit back at Kocharian for openly criticizing his
decision to invite Turkey’s President Abdullah Gul to visit Yerevan for the
September 6 match between the Armenian and Turkish national football teams. He
said he “respects” Kocharian’s statement and does not regard it as criticism. He
noted at the same time he had policy differences with the former Armenian
president even before succeeding the latter as head of state but always
preferred to not to voice them in public.

Sarkisian went on to defend his extraordinary invitation extended to Gul and
stressed the importance of improving Armenia’s strained relations with Turkey.
He further confirmed reports that senior diplomats from the two countries met in
Switzerland earlier this month to discuss the new chance of a Turkish-Armenian
rapprochement.

“Despite the absence of diplomatic relations, Armenian-Turkish contacts have
never stopped, I see nothing sensational in the fact that Armenian and Turkish
diplomats met in Geneva,” he said.

By Ruzanna Stepanian