YEREVAN, APRIL 11, ARMENPRESS.  The two-day discussion in the National Assembly focused on the debate between the concepts of historical Armenia and real Armenia, Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said, addressing the opposition's accusations against the government.

"I want to express my gratitude to the deputy who quoted my speech in the preface of the national security strategy, where I emphasized that examining the issue of our national security, we must first address our national identity. In fact, what I said in my speech yesterday from this podium is the realization of this thesis. What I say and present as a program is the outcome of scrutinizing our national identity.

Today, I do repeat that we are descended from Cilicia, the Armenian plateau, and the Kingdom of Van. Our debate lies in this: should we look at the world from the tower of the Kingdom of Van or from the tower of the Republic of Armenia? This is our conceptual debate," said Pashinyan. The Prime Minister responded to the question how  there could be an Armenian monastery from the 7th century somewhere and Azerbaijan just a few meters away.

"This is a very important issue. How can there be a 7th-century monastery, with Turkey just a few meters away, because Khor Virap, the source of our Christianity, is located in a place where Turkey is just a few meters away. The conceptual debate lies here. Do we accept that Turkey is just a few meters away from Khor Virap or not? I say that the government of the Republic of Armenia and the political majority acknowledge that Turkey is just a few meters away from Khor Virap, and recording this is the most important security measure for the government. And the strategic choice precisely relies on this."

When we say that Turkey is not a few meters away from Khor Virap, we choose historical Armenia. When we assert that Turkey is a few meters away from Khor Virap, we choose  present-day Armenia. The same approach applies in the case of Voskepar.

"We must record the strategic impossibility of reverting to the logic of historical Armenia. This is where our debate really lies. And this is an important debate," concluded Pashinyan.