In an interview with the state-run Armenpress news agency, Ambassador Lynne Tracy voiced support for the government’s “democratic and economic reform agenda” amid continuing daily demonstrations held by the country’s leading opposition forces.
“We are committed to continue helping the Armenian people build a future based on shared democratic values, a path they chose in 2018 and to which they recommitted themselves during the 2021 parliamentary election,” said Tracy.
Ishkhan Saghatelian, an opposition leader and the main speaker at the more than two-week protests, criticized her comments when he addressed thousands of supporters rallying in Yerevan’s France Square. He said that voters did not give Pashinian a mandate to “cede” Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijan.
“If some circles think the Armenian people will cater for their interests, they are deeply mistaken,” Saghatelian told the crowd. “The Armenian people stand in this square to prevent that. This is not a fight for power. This is a fight for Armenia’s sovereignty. And let nobody contrast democracy with security.”
Saghatelian went on to accuse the United States and other Western power of turning a blind eye to what called the Armenian authorities’ pressure on the judiciary, the existence of “dozens of political prisoners” and other human rights abuses.
“With you silence, you are contributing to dictatorship in Armenia,” he charged before the protesters again marched through the city center to demand Pashinian’s resignation.
Saghatelian also stressed that for the Armenian opposition Russia is a “strategic ally” while the U.S. and the European Union only “important partners” of Armenia.
Reacting to the protests last week, the U.S. State Department spokesman, Ned Price, urged the authorities to “exercise restraint.” He said at same the time that the protesters should “refrain from violence and respect the rule of law and Armenia’s democracy.”
The peaceful protests were sparked by Pashinian’s statements on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict made after his April 6 talks with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.
Addressing the parliament on April 13, the prime minister said the international community is pressing Armenia to scale back its demands on the status of Karabakh and recognize Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity. He signaled Yerevan’s intention to make such concessions to Baku.
Both the U.S. and the EU hailed Pashinian’s speech. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken praised his “courage and flexibility.”
Pashinian and his political allies have rejected the opposition demands for his resignation. They say that they won in the June 2021 elections a popular mandate to continue to rule Armenia.
