Honorable President of the National Assembly
Honorable Vice Presidents,
Honorable MPs,
Honorable Cabinet members,

I thank all those who participated in the discussion, asked questions, and raised issues. However, due to known circumstances, the discussion turned out to be somewhat incomplete, and I want to admit my guilt. Apparently, age is catching up, and I need to work on my communication skills further, because yesterday I just wanted to say that, taking into account the sensitivities of the opposition, I do not say “Ktrich Nersisyan”. That is, I meant I wouldn't call him that way, but those people stood up, took offense, and left. But I don't blame them; I apparently formulated my thoughts poorly. Today, I decided to come to the closing remarks and say "Garegin II," but then I thought, what if "Civil Contract" starts... I wanted to say "Garegin II" or some other, more precise formulation and say, "Dear opposition, I lay this expression at your feet like a red carpet; return to parliament." But they didn't even let me say that.

And now, dear colleagues, the most interesting thing: what issue of legitimacy is this esteemed opposition raising? If the government is illegitimate, I said it back at the end of the previous parliament, lay down your mandates, the square awaits you, make a revolution. There is no better revolutionary situation than illegitimate elections and an illegitimate government. This is paradise for any opposition, and we've also shown the methods—walk or run from Gyumri, or do something else, go and make a revolution. What are we even talking about? The elections were rigged... And whose vote was rigged? It was I who called on the people to come out and make a revolution.

Why are these people constantly confused? —they keep going, they keep returning, they keep going out, keep coming in? Because they themselves have a problem with legitimacy. They don't feel like they own this room; they understand they're temporary residents, sent on a specific mission. You know, events develop quickly, they don't get an order on what to do, so they can't decide: they go, they come, they go, they come. But that's not their problem; it's our problem, it's Armenia's problem. And I believe the choice is the following: either put down your mandates and pursue the revolution, or, having come, sit and work. I don't think taking offense at every word and leaving is a sign of strength.

The discussion here wasn't very active. You know, I don't recall the government program discussion to last two days. Yes, I didn't check, but at least in terms of impressions, this is the shortest discussion of the government program, and this is the fourth program we've discussed.

Among the issues discussed, matters related to the Armenian Apostolic Church once again played a role. An opposition representative says, "Your ideal cleric is Navasard Kjoyan, and you want to use him to..." I want to tell you frankly: if Garegin II or Ktrich Nersisyan accepts this agenda, I solemnly declare from this podium that I will sit down and, with all due respect, discuss this agenda with him. I never said, you know what, there are ours and there are not ours; some of them may observe the rules of integrity, while others may not.

And, by the way, the agenda for reforming the Armenian Apostolic Church is clearly defined—rules of integrity and clear mechanisms for enforcing them. Moreover, I've said at the working level that, yes, I believe the state can also provide a certain path out for all such clergy. But, yes, this is about preserving our national values, because our national values have been distorted precisely because of this fact.

Okay, let's put politics aside, but how can we tolerate our Holy of Holies being affected? Okay, let's put everything aside. Whether you want to call him Catholicos, Garegin II, or Ktrich Nersisyan, call him whatever you want, but behind all of this are facts known to every citizen of the Republic of Armenia and every believer. This is precisely the problem of legitimacy; legitimacy is a crucial issue.

Today, an opposition figure says that 97% of Armenian citizens believe in this church. Of course they do, but the problem is that 97% of Armenian citizens do, while the head of the church doesn't believe in God at all. He has no spiritual life, he has renounced his covenant with God, and this apostasy has been forced upon us all. I am not prepared to bear responsibility for this apostasy, I am not prepared. Do you know why? I'll tell you why. Today, a sentence from the Beatitudes of the Gospel of Matthew was twice read, and I also want to voice my own sentence from the Beatitudes of the Gospel of Matthew: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you." This is why I can't accept this.

And today, speaking out in defense of the church, we have people who don't know the difference between the Bible, the Testament, and the Gospel. They don't. For them, the church is just a tool, just a system for money laundering, another platform for a criminal subculture. That's what I'm talking about. I repeat: in the canonical text of the liturgy of the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church, the word "peace" appears more than 40 times, mostly with a plea to God for peace, a plea to God for peace throughout the world. In other words, in several places, the emphasis is on "peace to the world." Ktrich Nersisyan, or Garegin II, is a representative of the party of war. Why is he a representative of the party of war? What was discussed here is loyalty to conflict, the conflict that stems from Stalinist patriotism, the conflict that laid the foundations of Armenia. Look at what they say, what am I constantly accused of? I am accused of one simple thing. I ask one simple question and set a goal: we must be able to live in our own environment without outside help. What do they say? If we continue down this path... and we all followed the same path until 2024, a little this way, a little that way, but we all followed the same path. All roads lead to the same place. Do you know where these roads lead? To where Armenia's independence ends.

Another opposition representative says, "What did you inherit and what did you receive?" It's harsh, but I'll say it. By the way, I was the prime minister of this country until 2024, and I speak as the prime minister of this country: we turned a puppet state into a state that has a chance to be independent and sovereign. Why did this political force (not the people, because I don't want to target people), but why did this political logic appear on Armenia's political scene? Because it became obvious to everyone that we had transcended the logic of a puppet state and entered a logic that, at the end of it, we can, we have a chance to be a state. They came to reduce this chance to zero. That's what we're talking about. That's their mission. But I tell them one thing: abandon this mission, and you will become the Armenian political opposition, and we will debate much more heatedly. By the way, one should not think that this is a heated debate. For us, these are excellent, comfortable debates because we've been having these debates for the last eight years; for us, these are winning debates. Difficult debates are when we start arguing with each other with pen and paper in hand. Step out of this logic, and you won't have any problems. Decide for yourself.

This Constitution states: "Relations between the Republic of Armenia and the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church may be regulated by law." That is, the Republic of Armenia can pass a law... In the Republic of Armenia, both public organizations and parties are independent, but this does not mean a state within a state. The Republic of Armenia can pass a law and say: you must live in the Republic of Armenia by these rules. How can Germany have such a law, but Armenia cannot? And I want to say it directly: the government will publish a report on the crisis in the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church within one month at the latest. I will propose creating an investigative committee in the National Assembly to investigate all these facts and, as a result, adopt legislative changes.

Today, priests are in poverty, in destitution. Do you know why? Because there are "good parishes" in the church, too. For example, many poor and unfortunate priests are sent to churches located on the edge of some mountain, where only 15 people can visit a month. No one cares whether this person is hungry or healthy. Why shouldn't a priest receive a salary and why shouldn't he be able to take advantage of state-guaranteed benefits, such as health insurance, or, for example, income tax refunds?

I say the following: let the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church convene a National Church Council and declare: we renounce celibacy.

They decide, I say—decide what you want, decide, publish, and establish mechanisms to ensure this decision is respected. This is not normal, every bishop has four or five children. How can this be normal? What are we doing? And I never said "our supporters" and "your supporters", I said "those who recognize that there is a problem and it needs to be addressed, and those who deny it." I speak sincerely. If Garegin II or Ktrich Nersisyan said, "You know, yes, I admit there is a problem, I will turn the page, go, sit down, or invite them—all together”. And this isn't his or my problem, it's a problem of our national and state identity. And I say, why should these vulnerabilities be used against our state, that is, a state within a state, how can this be? It's impossible, we won't allow it.

Now another topic: an opposition representative came and said that the people are rightly and justifiably demanding Papikyan's resignation because of the events unfolding in the army... And they are demanding my resignation. Let's look: in 2002, there were 24 cases. Why didn't Serzh Sargsyan and Robert Kocharyan resign, Gegham Manukyan? In 2003, there were 15, in 2004, there were 16. Why didn't Robert Kocharyan resign, while Serzh Sargsyan was the Minister of Defense? Then Serzh Sargsyan, having seized power, became president, and Seyran Ohanyan was the Minister of Defense. Do you want numbers? 2010, there were 21 cases of murder and suicide, and why didn't you resign?

And today we have another problem. Yes, today the minister is talking about an international report, and this report says that promoting suicide leads to new suicides. Our opposition, in order to hurt either the minister or the government, is busy promoting suicide, while international reports say that there are people on the brink, and when a person sees so much public attention focused on it, it's a psychological state. This last straw also has an impact, but I'm not an expert, I don't want to say unprofessional things, I just had to say it.

The issue of the national debt—what kind of story is this? What did they make of it? I heard people say "default," I don't know what. To those who talk about default, I want to ask: what year are you living in, or when was the last time you were in Armenia? In other words, what kind of presumption of insanity is this? The national debt of the Republic of Armenia has never been as stable as it is today. Today, international investors are coming in and buying government bonds in the Armenian dram. Is that right, Mr. Finance Minister? When was the last time this happened?

Regarding the debt: when the North-South Highway was being built, people, our debt grew. They, including during the presidency of of the faction leader's father, signed, took on this debt, and did no work on the North-South Highway. They built that section in Artashat, which became the subject of international arbitration. There was so much embezzlement there. This debt hung in the balance, the work wasn't done, and the Republic of Armenia paid fines because it signed the loan but didn't do the work. Now Yerevan-Gyumri is ready. The Agarak-Kajaran section of the North-South Highway is being built at a rapid pace. These are loan obligations and agreements signed during their time, and this debt is starting to be expressed in real life.

Second, on May 28, I said from the podium: we have demonstrated. Regarding the debt, you should rather talk about the ENA debt. They took and pledged 100% of the ENA shares—Armenia's strategic, critical infrastructure—and that's not all. They took out a debt, pledged the ENA somewhere unknown, and took out a debt. The ENA, which the government took on last year, had a debt of 143 billion drams. And do you know what part of that debt represents? they took out interest-bearing loans from Armenian banks, and gave them to their relatives interest-free. Through the ENA, they destroyed specific sectors of the Armenian economy because they destroyed the entire procurement system. People wrote me letters with tears in their eyes, because what they were supposed to acquire through tender procedures, they bought from their relatives, friends, and that's still not the entire story. The ENA took out an interest-bearing loan, but gave it to their relatives interest-free. These companies of their relatives allegedly participated in tenders and siphoned off the money for their own families. Who paid for this, and who is paying for it? Electricity consumers of the Republic of Armenia.

I'll say it again: whoever talks about legitimacy—you should be talking about pears, apples, and the like; whoever talks about duty—you should be talking about pears, apples, and the like. Well, everything should have a limit, shouldn't it? I'm telling you right from this podium—they shouldn't have money. She understands the taps will be turned off. First, she sided with the Zangezur Copper and Molybdenum Combine (ZCMC) but she probably quickly realized there was no money, there was no money in the revolution. Yes, I'm talking about Anna Grigoryan. She seized the opportunity and went where the money was—she sided with ZCMC and Vahe Hakobyan, and from an unwavering revolutionary, she turned into an unwavering counter-revolutionary. Then you know what happened with ZCMC. So what will happen now, where else is there money? No, but we won't allow it to... I said—they shouldn't have any money, so that she would think entirely about something else.

Imagine, let's say, I spoke last night, gave an order from here, and if this morning's operation constitutes an order, then, dear people, I didn't give that order from here; I gave that order at Republic Square on June 5, 2026. Why did I give that order from there? Because no one speaks about that "Officers' House"—a historical and cultural monument was demolished; making its area the property of Robert Kocharyan, Levon Kocharyan, and Sedrak Kocharyan. How could that be? The Children's and Youth Tennis Center was taken over by those people and turned into Orange for themselves. "Toyota Yerevan"—on the one hand, if I understood correctly, Rubinyan and I were analyzing this; first they took the land, and then went and took a stake in "Toyota Yerevan." On the site of the building on Paronyan 8, there was an old building, and they bought it for next to nothing. "Kaputak-Sevan," the "Congress" hotel, a two-hectare plot of land on the Cascade...

Dear people, I ask: first, I have two questions: I've been the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia for eight years. Why don't I have land on the Cascade? Why don't I have a resort on the shores of Lake Sevan? Why don't I have a hotel? Why don't I have 1 billion 740 million drams? So, what do you think—I'm naive, and they're smart, strong guys, patriots, while I'm naive?

Now the right question has been asked, they're saying eight years, why after eight years? So I ask that same question, I say: why after eight years... Are any of these facts news? Why did I say it from the Republic Square? For one simple reason: because, while in power, we fought against this mafia every day. Why does this property belong to Robert Kocharyan and the rest? Because, I say, they bribed whoever they wanted, they sold whoever they wanted. In this judicial and legal system, there's still a mass of people saying: this morning, our guys are about to arrive (referring to the former officials being taken to the court). You will still see what fate they will have.

Why should I set this goal for eight years, why should I do it in front of 30,000 people, why did I say that day: people, this is my plan, if you agree, go and vote? And a state under the rule of the people of the Republic of Armenia is obliged to fulfill the will of the people. Yes, they must go to prison, yes, all this property... They should not have money to hand out election bribes, and this is a political obligation. And the state that does not do this... will not be able not to do it, because these are no longer my words, these are the words of the people of the Republic of Armenia, and let anyone try not to. The days of your mafia are over, when they bought whoever they wanted, sold whoever they wanted. They are over!

The Constitutional Court says the judicial system is independent. From whom is the judicial system independent? They thought the judicial system was independent of the people and that they would rob the people of the Republic of Armenia together with the mafia. You can't! You will humbly fulfill the will of the people, humbly. For eight years, didn't they know about this, didn't know the story around Cascade. Why did these cases sit on the shelves? Did I tell anyone to stop the process or to do this or that?

This is a message also for us, dear people, this is a message for me, this is a message for my relatives, my loved ones, my friends, my entourage, everyone who thinks that because we are in power, we can... This is a message for everyone—friend, relative, whoever—everything stolen from the people, yes, we will take it, return it—penny by penny, grain by grain, regardless of whose friend it is, whose relative, and so on and so forth. I hope we won't encounter such cases, but the case of Hovik Aghazaryan is precisely that. So what does this mean: should we have our own bribe-takers? We don't need a loyal bribe-taker. We have an obligation to these people, and we must fulfill that obligation.

Aghvan Vardanyan says: Kocharyan governed well. Yes, I govern poorly, because, as I say, I don't have a hotel, I don't have millions, I have nothing, but I have a mandate, I have legitimacy. I have said I'll bring them to their knees, and that means that I will bring them to their knees, de jure. They also say Kocharyan's apartment was broken into. Today I asked law enforcement, they said 54 addresses were searched. Does Kocharyan have 54 apartments? And they also manipulate over the presence of the children... Dear people, today 80% of people in penal institutions have children. What kind of approach is this? I mean, what does this mean—putting children first and hiding behind children's backs? This is a criminal case, a search should be conducted, why did the National Security Service do that? Should we send one investigator so they can pounce on him, and then boast, saying: did you see what strong guys we are? The state must work. We have said that the taste of the state will remain in your mouth. As soon as we sense that this taste has weakened a little, the people's state will restore your memory, and you will no longer be able to pretend to be an innocent lamb.

Yes, in 2018, we carried out a non-violent, velvet, people's revolution and declared there would be no vendettas, declared this a revolution of love and solidarity. In eight years, has even one of you come forward and said, "Friends, we plundered this, and you, according to the law, allowed us to keep 25% and return the rest"? Has anyone come forward and said such a thing? They watch, talk aggressively, travel to the south, to the north, get support there, are taken under their patronage and are told, "Go ahead, you don't have any problems''.

The other day, I accidentally saw that Narek Karapetyan wrote, "Dear Uncle, Happy Birthday." It's "Dear Uncle," no longer "Mr. Prime Minister"? Why didn't you write, "Mr. Prime Minister, Happy Birthday"? Why didn't you write? Write, write every day, take pictures again, make reels, post them, say again: “Mr. Prime Minister, we propose,” and let him say: “Yes, I support this proposal,” and so take pictures every day, post them.

The March 1st case has been solved. Due to mafia influence, Armenia's law enforcement system does not give an assessment to this; there isn't a single episode of March 1st in the criminal case that hasn't been solved. It's clear that Robert Kocharyan gave the order for the murders, how uniforms were brought from Karabakh and distributed to oligarchs, and the zone of responibility of each oligarch is known. Everything has been solved. The judicial and legal system of the Republic of Armenia had no will because it is independent from the government. We adhered to this ethic; it is independent from the government, and because it is independent from the government, it can take as much money as it wants from former oligarchs and drag it out. What happened to Gagik Khachatryan's trial? The judge dragged it out until he retired. And rest assured, it is more than the state pension that the judge expects. I'm sure, something tells me so.

And they also tell me that we do not like Artsakh or the people of Artsakh. For them, Artsakh was just a tool to make money. The people of Karabakh were held hostage there, and the people of Armenia were held hostage here, and robbed. They robbed there, and they robbed here. And this whole group, and the former ones...

And they're right to criticize us for the fact that the October 27th case hasn't been solved. They're right. That is, we recognized that the judicial system is independent, the judicial and legal system is independent. I didn't interfere, I didn't get involved in any criminal case, I didn't investigate, I didn't do this, I didn't do that, but there's a limit to everything. Independent. Independent of the people and the state, too? What kind of attitude is that?

They come and say from here, "ANIF, ANIF" [referring to the Armenian National Interests Fund– ed.]. Where did you hear that word? The State Supervision Service filed a report to law enforcement on this matter. And, by the way, it was very interesting; it's a pitty the search dragged on a bit, because I'm convinced that if it had dragged on a bit longer, the director of ANIF would be sitting here somewhere in these ranks. Because he had already declared: the government is incompetent... As far as I understand, there are plenty of people like that here. A man was elected chairman of the human rights commission, he came in and said, "Nomadic herders of Central Asia..." This is the arrogance of ignorance... And he accuses us of unprofessionalism... the arrogance of ignorance... Their essence is to come, speak from these podiums as if they are the best, the rest are nothing. Listen, it's impossible to inspire respect if you disrespect others. On the contrary, it speaks of ignorance and arrogance.

Today, Central Asia is one of the most important strategic centers in the world, with a rich cultural heritage. Has any of these people visited a single museum or archaeological site in Central Asia? Today, each Central Asian state operates according to its own model, but they are successful and established states. You know why he says this? Because it could turn out, for example, with the Central Asian countries, it could suddenly turn out that we'll sign a gas deal with them. But when something like this is said from this podium, it could have a negative impact.

Now, dear people, let's understand what this issue is—the issue of Karki. It states a very simple thing: it states that Armenia's internationally recognized territory is 29,743 square kilometers, and our exclave is included in this calculation, while Azerbaijan's enclaves are not, and they are reflected on the maps that reflect the situation as stated in the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration. Now, to say that no, this is not the case would mean to say that Armenia's sovereign, internationally recognized territory does not amount to 29,743 square kilometers. This would be a declaration of war, and this is precisely what the war party is expressing itself in. I suspected this from the thread they were pulling. Why did I make this statement, why did I say "Karki"? To eliminate all possibilities for escalation. Now there is no longer a single point around which it is possible to escalate, provoke, and destroy the peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Again, I say—how this will be resolved is a completely different matter, because we see our own problems, but Azerbaijan has the same ones. And I say: we must consider whether we are creating problems for each other or solving problems. And we need to reduce tension around this issue to zero. Once it is reduced to zero, all issues will be resolved in the best possible way.

But they don't want issues to be resolved in the best possible way because they've come to tie Armenia's feet in chains. Do you know what they want? They want CSTO peacekeepers to enter the Republic of Armenia. Their only mission, all their narratives... I'll say it again, I don't know who here realizes this, and who doesn't, but they have a very specific mission—to have CSTO peacekeepers enter the Republic of Armenia. I'll disappoint you: CSTO peacekeepers will not enter the Republic of Armenia, and no peacekeepers will enter the Republic of Armenia at all, because peace has been established, and the peacekeeper is the people—yes, including the people of Armenia and the people of Azerbaijan—the most reliable peacekeeper, and no foreign peacekeeper will enter Armenian territory! And that is the Fourth Republic! This is what distinguishes the Fourth Republic; the Fourth Republic doesn't go begging for its right to exist from various geopolitical poles. The Fourth Republic, through its daily work, earns its right to live and develop.

They say we're creating a rift in relations with the diaspora. Yes, we said that the kind of relations with the Diaspora where Armenia is a destination for second-hand clothing not only don't exist, but I've banned them, saying: God forbid any government agency accepts used clothing, shoes, or a car. The entire leadership of that government agency will have to deal with me. I'll fire everyone. Our understanding of the relationship between Armenia and the Diaspora is Firebird. There will be no other relations; the Diaspora cannot be Armenia's mentor. Gone are the days when people said, "You know what this is? It's a Snickers." I had this happen to me, I'm serious: a delegation from Armenia went, we were sitting there, and suddenly they took turns saying, "You know what this is?" We said, "Yes, it's cheese..." It's clear we were in a crisis, in a difficult situation, eating potatoes for years, but, dear people, that Armenia has long since been overcome. Today's Armenia is the Armenia of technology. Immigration has been in Armenia for two years now. Why are you unhappy with this? We invite people to work, including inviting people from abroad to work, including appointing them to high-ranking positions.

Dear colleagues,

We talked, discussed, and, essentially, I said what I wanted to say. You know, Stalinist view of history is designed for precisely this. It is said one shouldn't trust unconditionally... But who ever trusted unconditionally? I say: you shouldn't trust anyone unconditionally. Any one! But you say: no, there is one place that you should trust unconditionally, and you shouldn't trust unconditionally the others. We say: no, you shouldn't trust anyone unconditionally. Or they say history is this, history is that. What does that history have to do with this history? And the connection is this: today we are a state and we must behave like a state, because the state is something else, and, with all due respect, these are different statuses. Each status has its own code. Like being or not being a member of the National Assembly, or being a teacher or not a teacher—all of this has a certain code of behavior, a certain ethic.

They say why this name..., why do you say this... They call the village of Ararat in the Republic of Armenia Davalu, but we are accused of renouncing Ararat. They call the village of Ararat in the Republic of Armenia Davalu, at the same time they dream of Mount Ararat, and we are accused of renouncing Ararat. Now who is renouncing? They are renouncing the Republic of Armenia. And I say, the Declaration of Independence is about the renunciation of the Republic of Armenia, about the fact that the Republic of Armenia should not exist as an independent state. For four, five years, I published and wrote about this in detail in my messages. Yes, this year I did not send a message because I have nothing more to say on this topic. Everything I said has already been said, everything that needed to be said has already been said, I have nothing more to add. Therefore, yes, today, right now, in these very days, we have brought to life, and I hope that today, with your vote, we will de jure confirm one historical reality—the Fourth Republic has been established.

Glory to the fallen heroes, and long live the Fourth Republic of Armenia!