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The demonstrations have brought him to power, now Nikol Paschinian wants to maintain his position through the power of the streets. Armenia’s prime minister, who came to power in 2018 through mass protests, called on his supporters on Thursday to take to the streets for him. Apparently thousands of supporters followed this call in the capital, Yerevan.
Because Pashinian is afraid of being overthrown by the military. The former journalist spoke of an “attempted military coup.” And he added that the people must decide their fate and the army must do its job. Also, Paschinian apparently wants to fire the chief of staff, Onik Gasparian. In fact, the military had previously asked the government to resign. “The inefficient actions of the current authorities and the great errors in foreign policy have brought the country to the brink of collapse,” the Armed Forces said in a statement.
By no means is this just the military’s point of view. Pashinian opponents have been demonstrating in Yerevan by the thousands for days. Former high-ranking politicians such as former Prime Minister Wasgen Manukian, whom the opposition has already nominated as the new head of government, have joined the protests. “We should be ready to seize power as fast as lightning,” the 75-year-old said at a demonstration over the weekend.
Conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh
as a trigger for the crisis
The background to the escalation of the power struggle is the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, where the most recent war with Azerbaijan ended with bitter losses for Armenia. In the fighting from September 27 to November 9, Azerbaijan regained much of the territory it had lost in the early 1990s. Overall, the disputes resulted in more than 4,700 deaths. The remains of soldiers and civilians are still being recovered. 2,000 Russian peacekeepers are now overseeing a ceasefire.
Pashinian’s opponents, some of whom have already been arrested, blame the prime minister for this defeat and accuse him of having completely failed in the conflict. The latter had declared that he had accepted the ceasefire under pressure from his own army. In any case, the star of the 45-year-old man, who is also accused by his opponents of not having been in the army himself, has fallen due to the painful events in Nagorno-Karabakh for Armenia.
In 2018, Paschinian led massive protests against the old political elite and corruption in the country. After becoming prime minister, his party’s alliance won the next election with more than 70 percent. Then he introduced reforms, especially against corruption. Opinions are divided in Armenia on whether they were successful. The entire reform debate is now clouded by the Nagorno-Karabakh crisis.
Russia surrenders
initially covered
At the international level, Russia’s response is particularly crucial for Armenia. And Moscow was initially covered. According to the Interfax agency, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the situation in Armenia is viewed “with concern.” The Russian Foreign Ministry called for a peaceful solution to the situation.
In any case, the struggle for power in the country of three million people has intensified dramatically. The opposition apparently feels strengthened by the support of the military and wants to keep going until Paschinian resigns. He has offered new elections soon, but does not want to resign.(red./apa/reuters)
