Aghvan Vardanyan (Photo: Photolure)

YEREVAN (Armenian Weekly)—The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) announced on December 25 that it will not enter into an alliance with other political forces for the 2017 Parliamentary Elections.

ARF Parliamentary Faction secretary and ARF Supreme Body of Armenia member Aghvan Vardanyan told journalists that while the ARF will not join a bloc, there is a possibility of coming to a new deal with President Serge Sarkisian and his Republican Party (RPA). The ARF signed a cooperation agreement with the RPA in February. Currently, the ARF has three ministerial portfolios.

“Our agreement [with President Sarkisian] is open-ended… If the results of the parliamentary elections allow that… we have a huge circle of issues which we can solve,” Vardanyan told reporters.

After months of negotiations, the ARF and the RPA signed a “Political Cooperation Agreement” on February 24, at the Armenian presidential palace in Yerevan. The agreement, which was signed by Vardanyan and RPA Deputy Chair Armen Ashotyan, is comprised of three main headings that cover a wide array of issues the two parties will collaborate on. Most notably, the agreement highlights the fact that the ARF and the RPA will work closely to make the various aspects of Armenia’s new constitution a reality.

The agreement also notes several internal and external issues the two parties will work together on, including social, national security, and economic issues, as well as educational initiatives.