Karapetyan: Upon assuming power in Armenia, I am open to discussing  security matters with former presidents, but not  economy-related  issues

ArmInfo.Samvel Karapetyan, leader of the "Strong Armenia" bloc, has stated that after coming to  power in Armenia, he is ready to consult with the republic's first three presidents exclusively on matters of national security, not the economic policy. He made this statement at a press conference in Yerevan on May 22.

"I am ready to consult with them on matters concerning the security  of Armenia, but as for economic issues—no," Karapetyan stated.

Speaking about the upcoming parliamentary elections, the bloc leader  noted that he sees only four viable political parties capable of  overcoming, according to their calculations, the electoral threshold.  The remaining forces, according to Karapetyan, will collectively  garner around 4-5% of the vote. "This is exactly the picture we see  today. And, of course, it is unfortunate to realize that they will  scatter this 4–5%.  But what can we do? We've already said that we're  ready to cooperate with those forces that won't harm us.  After  various discussions, we decided not to form an alliance with these  forces, but simply to give them the opportunity to support us if they  wish to do so. This would be the only right step. I believe there  will be such forces,"  the leader of the "Strong Armenia" bloc  stated.

Karapetyan also clarified how he intends to convince the Armenian  people that his motivation to remove Armenian Prime Minister Nikol  Pashinyan from power is stronger than Pashinyan's motivation to  retain it.  "Through our daily work and by presenting our programs.  The people of Armenia must decide whether these programs serve their  interests or not. By speaking about our programs, we are essentially  demonstrating our motivations, our desires, and our capabilities to  the citizens of Armenia. Let them compare this with street shouting.  We do not think they are satisfied with that. These people were  simply kept in an atmosphere of fear. On election day, we will see  many surprises," the leader of the "Strong Armenia" bloc noted,  without specifying what those surprises might entail.

Karapetyan also stated that he is not prepared to accept the status  of an opposition leader. "Instead, we will take power! Therefore, we  do not say 'if' [we take power-ed], we say 'when.' And that 'when'  will be June 7 [the date of the parliamentary elections in  Armenia-ed]," the leader of the "Strong Armenia" bloc concluded.