Azernews.Az

YEREVAN – Armenia’s ruling coalition has refused to vote on a proposed bill on recognizing the independence of the self-proclaimed Nagorno Karabakh republic operating in the occupied Azerbaijani territories.

Galust Saakyan, who heads the parliamentary faction of President Serzh Sargsyan’s ruling Republic Party, has announced the decision in a statement, Armenia Today news agency reported.

The three parties included in the coalition claimed that there is no alternative to recognizing Nagorno Karabakh both in Armenia and internationally, but the decision would not meet Yerevan’s interests at this point. The Republic Party, Prosperous Armenia and Orinats Yerkir explained that the move would contradict the gist of the ongoing peace talks with Azerbaijan brokered by the OSCE Minsk Group and the country’s "constructive" stance.

The statement said that "when the right time comes", the collation, itself, would prepare a relevant draft law or support such an initiative on the part of other political blocs.

Raffi Ovannisian, the leader of the opposition Heritage party who proposed the bill, said in a meeting with the coalition members and the parliament speaker that it had been agreed to postpone the vote on the self-proclaimed republic’s "independence" until December 9.

Azerbaijan and Armenia fought a lengthy war that ended with the signing of a cease-fire in 1994, but Armenia continues to occupy Nagorno Karabakh and seven adjacent Azerbaijani districts in defiance of international law. Though the separatist regime in Nagorno Karabakh declared so-called independence at the time of the Soviet collapse in 1991, it has not been recognized by the world community.