Nikol Pashinyan
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan called on his supporters to take to the streets in order to preserve civil and popular power in the country. He stated that now this is the most important task, since the situation in the country remains “very difficult”, reports the Telegram channel “Sputnik Armenia”.
Pashinyan is expected to perform at Republic Square in the center of Yerevan at 16:00 (15:00 Moscow time). “The police and other law enforcement agencies will ensure security,” he said.
Pashinyan promised that during a rally in Republic Square he would voice the reason for the dismissal of the Chief of the General Staff Onik Gasparyan, who called for the dissolution of the government.
At the same time, the Ministry of Defense of Armenia did not comment on the statement of the General Staff demanding that Pashinyan resign. “Not yet,” said Gevorg Altunyan, head of the main information department, answering a question from a RIA Novosti journalist.
Earlier, the Armenian Armed Forces demanded the resignation of Pashinyan and the country's government. A special statement of the General Staff was signed by all the leadership, including Chief Onik Gasparyan, as well as the commanders of large military formations and the heads of all departments. Pashinyan himself described the situation as an attempted military coup.
Protests demanding Pashinyan to leave his post have continued in Armenia since the end of the military conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh. The opposition forces accuse the prime minister of betraying the national interests of the country; they have created a political movement “For the salvation of the homeland”, which included representatives of 17 parties and organizations. Pashinyan himself said that he was clean before the people.
