Armenia to elect president on February 18

Paruyr Ayrikyan, a candidate for president and leader of the Union of National Self-Determination, has decided not to request postponement of presidential polls by 2 weeks, his lawyer Levon Bagdasaryan said.

Ayrikyan was shot in a shoulder shot on the Street of Tpagrichneri in Yerevan at about 11.30 pm on January 31.

The police and members of the National Security Service formed a joint investigation group to study the incident.

Armenia will have presidential polls on February 18. Campaigning started on January 21 and will end on February 16. Armenian Speaker of Parliament Ovik Abramyan said that the elections may be postponed by 2 weeks.

Head of the parliamentary commission for state and legal affairs David Arutyunyan said that postponement of elections could only be initiated by the wounded candidate.

8 candidates are running for president: President Serzh Sargsyan, former PM and leader of the Freedom Party Grant Bagratyan, former Foreign Minister and leader of the Heritage Party Raffi Ovannisyan, leader of theNational Self-Identification Union Paruyr Ayrikyan, former Foreign Minister of Nagorno-Karabakh Arman Melikyan, a political analyst of Radio Hay Andreas Gukasyan, a researcher of epos VardanSedrakyan and leader of the National Consent Party Aram Arutyunyan.

Adapted from: Vestnik Kavkaza