Mekhtarian to Al-Manar: We Rejected Hariri΄s Electoral Offer

The five candidates are: Arthur Nazarian, George Qassarji, Hagop Pakradounian, Vrej Saboungian and Krikor Kaloust.

The Tashnag party said the party will have the freedom to vote in Beirut 1, the Metn and Zahle based on its own convictions, to which Hariri did not react favorably. "The bloc will have free political decision-making and will play a nationalistic legislative role," according to the statement.

Later, Hariri's press office answered back the Tashnag and denied in a statement having proposed to allocate a number of seat for the Armenian party in return for voting in favor of March 14 candidates.

Hariri's statement said that the Tashnag promised during the talks with the head of the Future movement to "completely commit to political neutrality between March 8 and March 14 forces following the legislative elections."

Meanwhile, the Tashnag party's Secretary General Hovig Mekhtarian spoke to Al-Manar and explained the reasons of his party's rejection of Hariri's offer. He said that the major reason for rejecting the offer was its condition, which is voting in favor of the March 14 bloc. "We're committed to our alliance with MP Michel Aoun and Minister Elie Skaff," Mekhitarian recalled.

The Tashnag official also reiterated that his party wouldn't give MP Michel Murr its votes in case he was an Armenian from the March 14 bloc run for the elections in the Metn district.

Mekhitarian pointed out that his party was planning to form an Armenian MPs bloc that will include five legislators. However, he refused to describe such Armenian bloc as "centrist" or "neutral," noting that these qualities cannot exist in Lebanon.