Baku charged Armenian opposition with pushing Yerevan into the abyss
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov, speaking with journalists in Baku, commented on anti-government actions in Armenia. According to the head of Azerbaijani diplomacy, the Armenian opposition is "pushing their country into the abyss."
“The organisers of the protest actions in Armenia are quite well-known persons in the Armenian society. For almost 30 years they have been making false promises to the Armenian people and today they are pushing Armenia into the abyss. This is an integral part of the struggle for power, they again want to raise the topic of Nagorno-Karabakh,” Bayramov said.
Baku is following the internal political processes in the neighbouring republic, and there is no talk of broad public support there, the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister claimed. Bayramov further indicated that the number of people taking part in protest rallies and marches in Yerevan “does not exceed six to seven thousand.” From the Azerbaijani minister's point of view, the lack of mass support shows that the Armenian society is "tired of false promises and illusions."
Benjamin Poghosyan, executive director of the Armenian Political Science Association, said: “The Prime Minister's confession suggests that while previously the status issue was a priority, legal issues now prevail, and Karabakh's status should follow. It is clear that this situation could not but cause concern in the Armenian community. Because taking into account the processes that have taken place over the past 30 years, everyone understands that if Artsakh remains part of Azerbaijan, it will definitely lead to the cleansing of Artsakh from the Armenians."
“According to him, protests began after the speech of the Prime Minister. But I would like to note one point. It is clear that the protests were organised by opposition political forces associated with the second and third presidents of Armenia and represented in the Parliament - the Motherland Party led by Artur Vanetsyan, the Republican Party of Armenia, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation of Dashnaktsutyun. Other movements not represented in parliament are also taking part in the protests," he added.
"But the point is that this is not just a political struggle. Those who take to the streets are not just people who worship political forces or associate with the second and third presidents. Among the demonstrators are people who have nothing to do with the former government. In the past, I mean those in power until April 2018," he added. "Therefore, despite the fact that the struggle is organised by political forces, in fact it is quite broad, and there are people who do not support any political force, but do not accept the cleansing of Artsakh from the Armenians," Poghosyan concluded.