Adoption of new Constitution is part of our election commitments, Pashinyan says

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said the adoption of a new Constitution remains one of the political commitments of the government, noting that the initiative was included in the election platform of the ruling Civil Contract party.

Speaking to reporters on July 9, Pashinyan stressed that voters had also endorsed that agenda.

"The agenda of constitutional change is included in the election platform of Armenia's ruling majority, and that is a fact. The platform states the need to adopt a new Constitution, and the people voted in favor of it. Another matter is that the balance of forces in parliament is not such that constitutional amendments can be adopted through the procedure currently prescribed. Nevertheless, this agenda exists, it is one of our election commitments, and we must continue to define our position on this issue," Pashinyan said.

The prime minister also commented on the timeline for publishing the draft of the new Constitution, saying the delay was due to proposals submitted by members of the ruling party's board.

"We decided to postpone the deadline for submitting proposals until after the elections so that they could be discussed calmly. The proposals have been reviewed, and only one remains. Once that proposal is discussed, we will publish the text. I believe this will happen before the end of the year," Pashinyan said.

Parliamentary elections were held in Armenia on June 7. The 9th National Assembly will comprise three political forces: the ruling Civil Contract party with 64 seats, the Strong Armenia alliance with 29 seats, and the Armenia Alliance with 12 seats.