The Declaration of State Sovereignty of Armenia was signed by

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''O ...

's president Levon Ter-Petrossian and Supreme Council of Armenia secretary Ara Sahakian on August 23, 1990 in

Yerevan Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and i ...

, Armenia. The Republic of Armenia was established on September 23, 1991 upon dissolution of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

. The declaration was rooted in the December 1, 1989, joint decision of the Armenian SSR Supreme Council and the Artsakh National Council on the "Reunification of the Armenian SSR and the Mountainous Region of Karabakh" with ties to the Republic of Armenia established on May 28, 1918 and the

Declaration of Independence of Armenia (1918) The Armenian Declaration of Independence ( hy, Հայաստանի Անկախության Հռչակագիր, translit=Hayastani Ankakhutyan Hrchakagir) is the declaration of independence of the Armenian provinces from the Russian Empire. Armenia ...

. The statement include 12 declarations including the establishment of a

right of return The right of return is a principle in international law which guarantees everyone's right of voluntary return to, or re-entry to, their country of origin or of citizenship. The right of return is part of the broader human rights concept freedom o ...

for the Armenian

diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews after ...

. It renames Armenian SSR to the Republic of Armenia and establishes that the state have a flag,

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

, and

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...

. It also states the nation's independence with its own currency, military, and banking system. The declaration guarantees

free speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recog ...

, press, and a division of governance between a judiciary, legislature and presidency. It calls for a multiparty democracy. It establishes the

Armenian language Armenian (Classical Armenian orthography, classical: , Armenian orthography reform, reformed: , , ) is an Indo-European languages, Indo-European language and an independent branch of that family of languages. It is the official language of Armenia ...

as official. It also supports "recognition of the 1915 Genocide in Ottoman Turkey and Western Armenia". It served as the "basis for the development" for the

Constitution of Armenia The Constitution of Armenia was adopted by a nationwide Armenian referendum on July 5, 1995. This constitution established Armenia as a democratic, sovereign, social, and constitutional state. Yerevan is defined as the state's capital. Power ...

.Armenian Declaration of Independence
Republic of Armenia The 1990 declaration was preceded by the Declaration of Independence of Armenia (1918), before Armenia was invaded and became part of the

References

{{Authority control 1990 in Armenia 1990 documents