A three-day forum organized by the Applied Policy Research Institute of Armenia (APRI) started in Yerevan today to discuss the challenges facing Armenia.

Armenian Security Council Secretary Armen Grigoryan, in a speech, stressed the need to diversify Armenia's foreign policy and the steps being taken in this direction.

Grigoryan later told reporters that Armenia has just received the tenth version of Azerbaijani proposals regarding a peace deal between the two countries. To the question whether Armenia is any closer to signing a peace agreement, Grigoryan replied, "There's a saying in diplomacy. It says, until everything is agreed, then nothing is agreed."

He also accused Russia of abandoning the Armenians of Artsakh, claiming that Azerbaijan couldn’t have launched the 2020 Artsakh War without Moscow’s permission.

“The Russians came, returned Artsakh to Azerbaijan, and then left," Grigoryan told reporters.

Grigoryan also spoke about acquiring weapons and stressed that Armenia acquires weapons only to protect its territorial integrity.

He said that the acquisition of weapons from Russia has decreased from 96% to 10%.

"And this is the choice of Russia, which has decided not to deliver the weapons whose supply contracts were signed back in 2021and 2022. "We have heard an explanation that the reason for this is the war with Ukraine, but there are contracts whose deliveries should have been made before the war," said Grigoryan.

To Hetq’s question as to the government's opinion about holding a referendum on integration into the European Union, Grigoryan said it's a matter for public discussion, which is happening.

 "We will wait for the reaction of the public," said Grigoryan.