The Artsakh National Assembly today, by a vote of 27 to 0, adopted a bill making Russian an “official language” in Artsakh.

Armenian will continue as the only “state language” of the Artsakh Republic, and Russian, in parallel with Armenian, is merely granted the status of an “official language.”

 "Taking into account the historical memory of Artsakh-Russia cultural, military, economic relations, the fact that Russian is the second language of communication for many Artsakh residents, we consider it possible to revitalize a new quality of relations, to form a new agenda,” reads a statement issued by the backers of the bill.

What differentiates, in practical terms, a “state language” from an “official” one, remains a somewhat nuanced question.