Tuesday,
Pashinian Ally Hails Sarkisian Resignation Anniversary
• Astghik Bedevian
Armenia -- Armenians celebrate the resignation of Prime Minister Serzh
Sarkisian, Yerevan, April 23, 2018.
A close associate of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian congratulated Armenians on
Tuesday on the first anniversary of the dramatic resignation of the country’s
former leader, Serzh Sarkisian, announced amid mass protests against his
continued rule.
“I want to congratulate all of us in connection with that event and say that a
very important event happened in Armenia one year ago,” said Alen Simonian, a
deputy parliament speaker and senior member of Pashinian’s My Step bloc.
“The people of Armenia once again proved their superior qualities,” Simonian
told reporters.
Sarkisian stepped down on April 23, 2018 just six days after completing his
second presidential term in office and becoming Armenia’s prime minister amid
intensifying street protests organized by Pashinian.
“Nikol Pashinian was right, I was mistaken,” Sarkisian said in a written
address to the nation.“There are several solutions to the existing situation
but I will not opt for any of them. They are not to my liking.”
“The movement in the streets is against my tenure. I am fulfilling your
demand,” he added.
ARMENIA -- A man covered with a national flag waves an opened bottle of a
sparkling wine celebrating Armenian Prime Minister's Serzh Sarkisian's
resignation in Republic Square in Yerevan, April 23, 2018
The announcement sparked jubilant scenes in the streets of Yerevan filled with
hundreds of thousands of people demanding his resignation.
Sarkisian publicly rejected the demands for his resignation as recently as on
April 22. At a short televised meeting with Pashinian, he accused the
opposition leader of blackmailing “the legitimate authorities of the state.” “A
faction that got 7-8 percent of the vote [in the April 2017 parliamentary
elections] cannot speak on behalf of the people,” he said, referring to the
opposition Yelk bloc, of which Pashinian was a leader.
Pashinian was detained more than an hour after that meeting while holding a
fresh demonstration in Yerevan. The arrest only added to popular anger, with
tens of thousands of people flocking to Republic Square later on April 22.
The protests resumed in Yerevan and other Armenian cities the following
morning. Pashinian was set free in the afternoon, shortly before the
announcement of Sarkisian’s resignation.
The then Armenian parliament controlled by Sarkisian’s Republican Party (HHK)
reluctantly elected Pashinian prime minister on May 8 under relentless pressure
from huge crowds demonstrating across the country.
Pashinian’s protest movement was also backed by other major political forces,
notably Gagik Tsarukian’s Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK). The BHK joined his
first cabinet formed later in May. It is now in opposition to the government.
ARMENIA -- Opposition demonstrators gathered on the Republic Square celebrating
Armenian Prime Minister's Serzh Sarkisian's resignation in Yerevan, April 23,
2018
A senior BHK figure, Gevorg Petrosian, claimed on Tuesday that the “velvet
revolution” has not lived up to the people’s expectations yet. “The people did
the revolution in hopes that there will be a tangible, positive improvement in
their lives in the very near future,” he said. “In the economic sense we don’t
have tangible growth right now.”
Simonian disagreed, saying that Pashinian’s government is consistently
improving the economic situation in Armenia with sweeping reforms. “This is an
ongoing process which will continue unabated,” he said. “Everything will be
done so that Armenia’s citizens feel the difference on their skin, in their
family budgets.”
Earlier this month the current parliament controlled by My Step approved a
government proposal to designate the last Saturday of April as a public holiday
called Citizen’s Day. Pashinian insisted in March that the new holiday will be
dedicated to “the victory of the people and democracy,” rather than his rise to
power.
Russian Military Said To Deploy More Advanced Jets In Armenia
• Emil Danielyan
Singapore -- A Sukhoi SU-30 fighter jet from the Royal Malaysian Air Force
performs a slow fly past during the Singapore Airshow at Changi exhibition
center in Singapore, February 16, 2016
Russia will replace its 18 MiG-29 fighter jets stationed in Armenia with more
sophisticated and powerful aircraft, it was reported on Tuesday
Citing an unnamed official in the Defense Ministry in Moscow, the TASS news
agency said the Russian military will start deploying Sukhoi Su-30SM jets to
the Erebuni airbase in Yerevan next year.
“The delivery of the aircraft will be carried out in two phases: in 2020 and
2021,” the said the unnamed source. “It is planned that all 18 MiG-29s, which
are currently flown by pilots of the airbase, will be replaced by Su-30SMs.”
Su-30SM is a modernized version of a heavy fighter jet developed by the Sukhoi
company in the late 1980s. The Russian military received the first batch of
such aircraft in 2012. It can carry much heavier and more wide-ranging rockets
and has more advanced electronic equipment than MiG-29, which was designed in
the 1970s.
Armenia - A Russian MiG-29 fighter jet prepares for takeoff at the Erebuni air
base in Yerevan, 12Mar2016.
The Russian ambassador to Armenia, Sergey Kopyrkin, did not deny or confirm the
TASS report when he spoke to journalists later on Tuesday. “I am not prepared
to talk about this subject in detail,” Kopyrkin said, according to the Sputnik
news agency.
For its part, Armenia’s Defense Ministry declined to comment on the possible
deployment of Su-30SM aircraft, saying that Moscow has made no official
statements to that effect.
An Armenian government source told RFE/RL’s Armenian service that Yerevan would
welcome such a deployment because Su-30SM is more modern than the aging MiG-29s
that are part of the Russian military base in Armenia. The MiG-29s were
modernized by the Russian Air Force several years ago.
The Russia base headquartered in Gyumri is in turn part of Russia’s Southern
Military District. The district commander, Colonel-General Alexander Dvornikov,
met with the visiting chief of the Armenian army’s General Staff,
Lieutenant-General Artak Davtian, on April 19.
Russia -- Colonel-General Alexander Dvornikov (L), commander of Russia's
Southern Military District, meets with Lieutenant-General Artak Davtian (R),
the Amrenian army chief of staff, April 19, 2019.
According to the Armenia Defense Ministry, the two generals discussed “joint
combat readiness activities.” A ministry statement said Dvornikov also praised
the most recent Russian-Armenian military exercises that were held at a
training ground 50 kilometers west of Yerevan on April 1-12.
Earlier this year, Moscow and Yerevan signed a contract for the delivery of
four Sukhoi Su-30SM jets to Armenia. Defense Minister Davit Tonoyan said in
February that the Armenian military will receive them by the beginning of 2020.
It plans to buy more such aircraft in the following years, he said.
Financial details of the fighter jet deal remain unknown. Membership in the
Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) entitles Armenia to
buying Russian weapons at discounted prices.
Armenian Law-Enforcement Body Reports Sharp Rise In Corruption Probes
Armenia -The Investigative Committee headquarters in Yerevan.
Armenia’s Investigative Committee said on Tuesday that the number of state
officials and other individuals prosecuted by it on corruption charges more
than doubled last year.
In a detailed statement, the law-enforcement agency, which conducts the vast
majority of criminal investigations in the country, revealed that it opened
1,077 corruption-related cases in 2018, up from 403 such cases in 2017. It said
presumed embezzlement or misuse of public funds accounted for the largest share
of those inquiries, followed by almost 130 alleged instances of bribery.
The Investigative Committee said 382 individuals working in the central or
local government bodies, the security apparatus and other public institutions
were charged with various corrupt practices as a result. It reported a total of
77 corruption-related arrests of these and other people, compared with 23
arrests made in 2017.
The committee did not specify whether the bulk of these actions were taken
after last spring’s mass protests which toppled Armenia’s former government
accused by its political opponents of not only tolerating but also sponsoring
corruption.
Public discontent with widespread graft is thought to be one of the reasons for
the “velvet revolution.” Nikol Pashinian, the revolution leader elected prime
minister in May, claims to have already eliminated “systemic corruption” in
Armenia.
The most high-profile corruption probes launched after the revolution have
targeted relatives and cronies of Serzh Sarkisian, the country’s deposed former
leader. In particular, one of his two brothers, Levon, was charged with
“illegal enrichment” after tax inspectors discovered in June 2018 that he and
his two children hold almost $7 million in undeclared deposits at an Armenian
bank. Levon Sarkisian, who is known to have worked only in the public sector,
apparently left Armenia shortly before being indicted.
Press Review
“Zhoghovurd” comments on the first anniversary of Serzh Sarkisian’s dramatic
resignation as Armenia’s newly elected prime minister. “He resigned under
popular pressure,” writes the paper. “Although he said the day before that ‘a
political force that got 7 percent of the vote has no right to speak on behalf
of the people’ and hinted at another March 1-style crackdown, he admitted on
April 23: ‘Nikol Pashinian was right, I was wrong.’ There was a real jubilation
in Armenia on the day of Serzh Sarkisian’s resignation.” The paper says that
the greatest achievement of the past year was the conduct of free and fair
parliamentary elections in December. It also praised the new government’s
economic policies and record.
“Aravot” says that judging from continuing statements made by senior members of
Sarkisian’s Republican Party of Armenia (HHK), they “still do not understand
and do not even try to understand that they were rejected and are hated to this
day.” “They think that the revolution which happened one year ago was the
result of a skillful use of public relations and political ‘color’ techniques,”
editorializes the paper. “Far from denying that factor, we have to point out
that it plaid a secondary role. They key thing was the public mood which
accumulated in the past 20 years.”
“The events of last year must also serve as a lesson for the current
authorities. Childish jubilation and blind worship are as dangerous as
courtier’s flattery,” concludes “Aravot.”
“Zhamanak” says Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian has trouble making Armenians
understand what the “economic revolution” promised by him is all about. The
paper says the main reason for this is that people have traditionally expected
their government to give them tangible economic benefits, rather than create
conditions for prosperity. “This is where a dialogue is not taking place,” it
says, adding that Pashinian and his associates themselves nurtured this “old
mindset” when they were in opposition to the country’s former governments.
(Lilit Harutiunian)
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2019 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
www.rferl.org