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The Speaker of the RA National Assembly Galust Sahakyan sent congratulatory address on RA Independence Day. The address reads:

“Dear compatriots, I congratulate you on 25^th anniversary of Independence of the Republic of Armenia.

The essence and meaning of independence are beyond the borders of our state, as being holiday of our state, at the same time, it is national. A quarter-century ago the legal opportunity of declaring independence through referendum was only that of Armenia’s citizens, but its results were historical and fatal not only for the residents of Armenia, but for the millions of our compatriots living hundreds and thousands of kilometers beyond its borders, but still considering themselves in them. Our almost unanimous Yes on September 21, 1991 was the annunciation of realized choice of the new road. We followed our dream being in reality, and turned it into new reality. Keeping history of the past in our conscience, we moved forward, continuing to build new realties and our newest history, the history of the Third Republic of Armenia, with faith and confidence.

Dear compatriots, we have been living in our independent country with sovereign statehood for 25 years and its borders conventionally separate the Armenians living in Armenia and Artsakh, America and Australia, Europe and Asia, because the Motherland does not recognize any borders and unites our thoughts, efforts and feelings, works and actions directed at its strengthening.

During 25 years, we haven’t had lack of both work and effort, or feeling and selfless devotion of all the Armenians towards the Motherland, towards Armenia, which had been significant, visible and tangible both in war times and in peace, in economic field and in front.

It has been 25 years that through the efforts of all-Armenia and all-Armenians the Republic of Armenia has strengthened its lasting place on the political and economic map of the world, which as a consequence of geo-political different interests regularly undergoes changes. With combination of necessary flexibility and circumspection we managed to attain a permanent reservation in that space, showing adherence to principles and steadfastness, appropriate feeling of a moment and situation. During 25 years many tried with no result to break the all-Armenianness and love towards the Motherland by different, including military efforts and means, they tried beyond the borders of Armenia, near its borders and inside them. And 25 years have become a period of ordeal, strengthening and development for us, during which we always thought about victory and never about defeat, guided and acting by winner's psychology and logic of victory. There is no place for idea of defeatism in our state and public way of thinking, because with such way of thinking we will neither establish a state, nor a society. Our security and peace cannot be guaranteed in that way, without aspiration of victory and progress, without its practical manifestation. Beginning from the border, security and peace are also shaped just inside the country, in the public and political field, by the reasonable solution of social, economic and political problems, by the all-Armenian perception of the idea of the Motherland, treating Diaspora and the Republic of Nagorno Karabakh, the second Armenian state, with tenderness and care of the Motherland, besides all that also with the security guarantor's confidence, especially when Artsakh has been the spiritual moving force and stimulus for Armenia's Independence.

Dear compatriots, our 25-year-old posture, our run as a state and people testify to the unreserved consciousness of our resoluteness and steadfastness, cohesive force, which is the warrant of our permanent continuity. Once again congratulating all of us on Independence Day I wish everybody peace, welfare and optimism.”