Armenia's Pashinyan not intending to resign amid protests
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Yerevan residents are demanding Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to step down, as they call him a 'traitor' in light of the deadly clashes in Nagorno-Karabakh.
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Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan gestures during a news conference in Yerevan, Armenia on March 14, 2023. (AP)
According to a report by the Hraparak newspaper on Thursday, citing sources, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated at a meeting with allies that he does not intend to resign under any circumstances, which comes amid violent clashes and a ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Anti-government demonstrations in Yerevan on Tuesday turned into violent clashes between protesters and authorities at the gates of the Armenian government building in Yerevan, shortly after Azerbaijan claimed to have won in a 24-hour military operation in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Baku initiated regional "anti-terrorist activities" within the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh area with the aim of "restoring the constitutional order."
Protesters yelled “Artsakh, Artsakh, Artsakh" - the Armenian name for Nagorno-Karabakh - and chanted, “Nikol is a traitor!”
🇦🇲🇦🇿Protesters in Yerevan chanting "Nikol (Pashinyan) is a traitor!" pic.twitter.com/sQrmzGSBDU
— DD Geopolitics (@DD_Geopolitics) September 19, 2023
Hindering efforts
Azerbaijan’s president, Ilham Aliyev, said in a televised address on Wednesday that the military operation “restored sovereignty” and praised the army for the “complete surrender” of local Armenian fighters.
Aliyev claimed that local Armenians from Karabakh have “forgotten that they live in Azerbaijan” but assured that there would not be repercussions against the local population.
Read next: Karabakh Armenians blame int. community for failing to prevent clash
Russia’s defense ministry played a role in mediation, given the presence of its peacekeepers in the region, saying on Wednesday that it took in about 5,000 Karabakh residents after evacuation, according to the Interfax news agency.
Just last week, on September 13, Pashinyan officially acknowledged that his country recognizes the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region as part of Azerbaijan's sovereign territory.
His statement came in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin's remarks expressing limitations on Russia's involvement in Nagorno-Karabakh following Armenia's public recognition of Azerbaijan's claim to the Armenian-majority region.
This clash may hinder the previous efforts made in May to recognize each other’s territorial integrity and make progress toward normalizing relations.
"There is a possibility of reaching a peace agreement between Baku and Yerevan, especially considering that Armenia has officially recognized Nagorno-Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan," Aliyev said at a meeting, adding his nation "has no territorial claims against Armenia."
"You have to try very hard and have a wild imagination in order to see territorial claims in my words," he added.
