Armenian President Robert Kocharian, in a speech this week to Armenian students in Moscow, has once more put his stance towards Turkey out in the open. According to the Armenian news agency ARKA, Kocharian said "We see as unacceptable Turkey's request that we give up talks about the Karabag region and the genocide. We will sit down to speak with Turkey only if there are no such requests made." Kocharian also asserted in his speech to students that the Armenian controlled Nagorno Karabag region was much more democratic than Azerbayjian.

Saying that recent parliamentary elections in Karabag might act as an example of democracy for Azerbayjian, Kocharian insisted that "Karabag has in fact been independent since 1988. This status would never be returned if it were part of Azerbayjian. I am at the head of the democracy road for Karabag."