YEREVAN (Hetq)–Aram Sargsyan, the first President of the International Armenian Congress and leader of Armenia’s Democratic Party, declared on September 30 that the Armenian-Turkish protocols are unacceptable as presently worded.

Tomorrow, Sargsyan will present a list of proposed modifications at the parliaments schedules hearings on the protocols. One will deal with the mutual obligations of both Armenia and Turkey. “Armenia has never had any obligation regarding Turkey. Turkey, via these protocols, wishes for Armenia to recognize the Treaty of Kars. But that was signed by five countries and thus isn’t a bilateral obligation of Armenia.”

The Democratic Party will also demand that the protocols be examined by an international legal organization for applicability.

Sargsyan said that there is no need for an impartial examination of historical issues and that this simply means losing the international results of the Genocide recognition activities to date. He stated the view that Turkey wishes to unite with its brotherly countries in the region and that Armenia stands in the way of that aim.

“If International Armenian Congress President Ara Abrahamyan were here now, he would be stating more or less the same things. Our positions are the same on this. Abrahamyan has said that he would express his views on the matter when President Sargsyan meets with Armenian leaders from the CIS countries in October.

Sargsyan stated that never before has the diaspora taken such an active interest in the policy affairs of Armenia. “These are pan-national issues. If the diaspora and Armenia split on this issue I cannot imagine a bigger blow to Armenia.”

Sargsyan stated that he believed it was possible to debate the legality of the protocols within the Republic of Armenia Constitutional Court. “I am convinced that the protocols will wind up in the Constitutional Court where the issue of their constitutionality will be reviewed.”

He stated that the discussions now being held in various regional centres of Armenia is a foregone conclusion since most officials are dependent on the central government and thus must express their support of recent foreign policy moves.

“There are enough political forces in Armenia and in the diaspora that can join together and see to it that these protocols are never ratified,” he concluded.