Armenia plans to remove Pashinyan gently

Dissatisfaction with the activities of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is growing in Armenian society and political circles. The rating of the authorities and personally Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan inside Armenia falls primarily in the light of the problems associated with the coronavirus, but I do not think that this process will go over the line, sociologist Karen Sargsyan told NovostiNK on May 10, 2020. However, after May 10, new reasons appeared to talk about the continuing decline in the confidence of Armenians in the head of government.

Examples of "punctures" of Pashinyan and his team are increasing daily. The latest example is the rude statement of the Health Minister of Armenia Torosyan, who, trying to explain the country's catastrophically difficult situation with the coronavirus, accused his colleagues in Georgia of manipulating statistics. In Georgia, the pandemic is coming to naught; less than ten patients with coronavirus are found there daily. Torosyan’s words introduced new tension in the Armenian-Georgian relations.

Minister Arsen Torosyan said at a press conference, “Is it possible that only 1-2 cases of coronavirus a day are really detected in Georgia, or in reality not all cases of COVID-19 are detected and included in the statistics? Georgian public health and anti-epidemiological systems are significantly different from the Armenian one, and not in a good way. Our systems are stronger, and this is a fact," said the Health Minister of Armenia.

Tengiz Tsertsvadze, the Director General of the Tbilisi Infectious Disease Hospital, answered him. In an interview with Georgian journalists, he called Torosyan’s statements incorrect. "I don’t think that Mr. Torosyan should learn from us that a senior official should not make such statements, especially if they are not supported by arguments," Tsertsvadze said. He cited statistics as an example: as of May 22,  728 cases of COVID-19 were identified in Georgia, of which 12 people died; in Armenia  there were  6302 cases, of which 77 people died. We add that in Armenia, the reserve of beds in hospitals has ended and from today new patients with coronavirus will have to be treated in their places of residence.

“Nikol Pashinyan was the first to turn the threat of coronavirus into a trifle with his speeches and unsuccessful jokes. Then for two months, he and his ministers voiced calls not to wear masks. Now, when the number of infected people is approaching 500 every day, he suddenly woke up and began to blame people that they are not serious about the virus and do not wear masks. First, I accuse Nikol Pashinyan of creating such an atmosphere when in the eyes of society the coronavirus became “a dog that should not be taken seriously,” writes Vram Sukiasyan (tert.am).

Pashinyan is accused of constantly deteriorating the Armenian-Russian relations, which was expressed in Putin’s reluctance to sell gas to Armenia at the price offered by the Armenian department, and a statement by Russian Foreign Minister S. Lavrov, in which he emphasized the need for a phased solution to the Karabakh problem.

“These authorities can’t bring any reform or business they have announced to their logical conclusion. This indicates their lack of talent, their lack of professionalism... nothing prevents them, and they just need the will to make changes and the ability implement them. They cannot carry out deep reforms in any sphere; they cannot normally manage any sphere. The whole system of government is in chaos today," said in an interview Arthur Vanetsyan, the former director of the National Security Service and the chair of the Board of Trustees of the “Rodina” Development Fund, who left the country after the conflict with Pashinyan.

“The issue of “transit” of power is   actively being discussed in the highest echelons of power. The issue has become even more urgent against the background of tense relations between the Armenian government and Russia (and not only), when the resources of external legitimacy have already depleted. Thus, according to the Fact newspaper, several options are being discussed, and one of them concerns the President of Armenia Armen Sargsyan. According to the newspaper, during two years in power Pashinyan managed to burn all bridges and cross all possible borders with the entire political field. The only "bridge" that remained unscathed was the connection with President Armen Sargsyan, which they are currently trying to use," reports the Caucasian Knot blogger from Yerevan. He believes that the Fakt newspaper publishes verified information and is not close to Pashinyan’s political opponents. Version of the «Fact" can be trusted.

According to the newspaper’s sources, the version of a phased transfer of power to Armen Sargsyan is being discussed, the first step of which should be to “transfer” to Sargsyan the position of Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan. If this agreement is reached, then the person indicated by Armen Sargsyan will be appointed as the Deputy Prime Minister instead of Avinyan.