On September 17, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his wife Anna Hakobyan voted in the Yerevan Council of Elders elections, the Press Office of the Armenia Prime Minister reported. Next, the Prime Minister answered the journalists' questions.

Nikol Pashinyan stated that Armenia cannot change its foreign policy vector; state interests determine it. "Armenia's foreign policy is transparent, and I don't think such formulations are appropriate. Armenia cannot change the vector of its foreign policy; its foreign policy is always determined by state interests. Consequently, Armenia's foreign policy is always guided and determined and proceeds from Armenia's state interests," he said.

About the possible meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that no document is expected to be signed on October 5 in Spanish Granada, where he is supposed to meet with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on the sidelines of a meeting of the European Political Community. "If Armenia and Azerbaijan were to sign a document in Granada, that would mean that that document was in line with Armenia's interests. We have said that our priority is the peace agenda, and we want to sign a peace treaty with Azerbaijan as quickly as possible, for example, by the end of this year or early next year. We are doing everything for that. I would like to say that the signing of a document is being prepared in Granada, but unfortunately, it is not," he told reporters.

Moreover, the Armenian Prime Minister refused to comment on Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's statement. After voting in the Yerevan Council of Elders elections in the morning, Pashinyan was asked by reporters to comment on Lavrov's concerns that Armenia is pushing Russians out of Armenia with Western support. "I have already said that I prefer to comment on the statements made by my peers," Pashinyan said.

Also, Pashinyan said that he is not sure that Azerbaijan, apart from public statements, has a real political will to establish a dialog with Nagorno-Karabakh authorities. Pashinyan noted that international partners were working intensively to create a mechanism to initiate a dialogue between Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh. According to the Armenia leader, Azerbaijan’s desire for dialog is manifested at the official level, however, after trying to understand the situation after several failed meetings, Pashinyan doubted that in Baku, apart from public statements, there is a real political will to implement this dialogue.