Armenian President Vahagn Khachaturyan, in a congratulatory message marking the 35th anniversary of Independence Day, said Armenia needs to remain flexible without losing its commitment to principles.
“Independence, freedom, sovereignty and statehood are fundamental and indispensable values for any people. Throughout its millennia-long history, the Armenian people have experienced the loss and restoration of statehood, periods of progress and the most severe trials. Today, we have what generations have fought for — the Republic of Armenia.
Our republic is the present-day reality of the Armenian people’s historical continuity and the embodiment of the centuries-old aspiration of Armenians worldwide to have their own state. Statehood is not a value that is acquired once and secured forever, but a reality that is created and strengthened every day,” the president said.
He stressed that independence is the ability to determine one’s own destiny, while freedom is the ability to make one’s own decisions, and that both also require assuming responsibility. Sovereignty, according to the president, is the political capacity to define one’s own interests and defend them.
Khachaturyan noted that the world and the region have changed, as have the conditions for security, economic development and progress. To confront these new realities, Armenia needs to demonstrate flexibility without losing its commitment to principles and maintain resilience while retaining the ability to change.
The Armenian president stressed that policies can be changed, institutions can be reformed and new solutions can be found, but independence, freedom, sovereignty and statehood cannot become values dependent on circumstances.
“The state and public interests of the Republic of Armenia must be the criterion for all our decisions,” the message said.
According to the president, it is necessary to understand what kind of state we want to leave as a legacy to future generations and to pass on to them not only the fact of having an independent state, but also a sovereign, free, democratic and capable state.
