26 February 2021, 11:14
Political analysts treat army's intervention into opposition's conflict with Pashinyan as possible
Militaries can interfere into the internal political situation, if the President of Armenia approves the resignation of the Chief of the General Staff, or if protests are suppressed by force, political analysts have predicted. The General Staff's demand for Pashinyan's resignation has reduced his chances of retaining power, Stepan Danielyan, a political analyst, believes.
The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on Thursday (February 25), Yerevan townspeople took to the streets demanding the resignation of Nikol Pashinyan, the Premier. His supporters did the same; and clashes broke out between activists' groups. Pashinyan threatened to crack down on the protests.
The situation can change dramatically, if the president fulfils Pashinyan's demand and fires the Chief of the General Staff, Mr Danielyan believes. In his opinion, military servicemen can intervene, if force is used against the protesters.
In his turn, Armen Vardanyan, a political analyst, believes that the army is unlikely to join protests, since Vagarshak Arutyunyan, the Defence Minister, is loyal to Pashinyan.
According to Stepan Danielyan, the police remained the only support for preserving the Pashinyan's power.
The opposition has so far failed to mobilize the full potential of its supporters, Akop Badalyan, a political observer, believes. In his opinion, the opposition is copying the tactics of the "velvet" revolution, but has no chance of success due to the lack of public trust. The 17 political forces that created the "Salvation Committee" are associated with the former system of power, which wants revenge, Mr Badalyan has explained.
Armen Vardanyan agrees that the opposition is repeating the tactics of the "velvet" revolution – for example, by trying to involve students in protests, but the chance has been missed, he believes.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 25, 2021 at 07:21 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.
Author: Armine Martirosyan, Tigran Petrosyan Source: CK correspondents
