ETCHMIADZIN — His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, received lawmakers from the Strong Armenia and Hayastan factions of the ninth National Assembly at the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin on August 2. During the meeting, he said that, for well-known reasons, he had not attended the opening session of the National Assembly to offer the deputies his blessing and message. For the first time in the history of independent Armenia, the Catholicos of All Armenians did not attend the opening session of the National Assembly. Following President Vahagn Khachaturyan’s address, opposition lawmakers asked about the absence of the Catholicos. Knyaz Hasanov, the eldest member of parliament and the lawmaker presiding over the session, urged them not to disrupt the proceedings.