Russia said that it is interested in Armenia’s return to stability, in what was Moscow’s first reaction to ongoing opposition protests calling for the ouster of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
Russia’s presidential spokesperson Demitry Peskov said that what is happening in Armenia is the country’s internal affair, but added that Moscow is interested that the situation is solved as soon as possible, the TASS news agency reported on Thursday.
“Armenia is our ally. It is our partner in integration processes that are very important for us. Armenia is our greatest friend,” said Peskov.
“Therefore, we are interested that this period ends in Armenia as quickly as possible and there is a period of stability in the country which will allow to gradually move on the implementation of the trilateral agreements over Karabakh that were reached with the participation of the Russian President,” Peskov said, adding that stability in Armenia will also allow for further development of relations between Yerevan and Moscow.
On Wednesday, the opposition Armenia and I Have Honor alliances officially called for Pashinyan’s resignation, blaming him for the humiliating defeat in the 2020 War and accusing him of sellout Artsakh’s interests in the government’s pursuit of a peace treaty with Azerbaijan.
Pashinyan rejected the opposition’s calls for his resignation, saying that former president Serzh Sarkisian was to blame for the 2020 war.
The recent wave of protests were sparked by Pashinyan’s comments last month in Parliament, where he blamed international pressure forcing his government to agree to peace talks with Baku.
