On February 23, Ruben Vardanyan was dismissed from the post of State Minister (head of government) of separatist Nagorno-Karabakh. De-facto Nagorno-Karabakh President Arayik Harutyunyan issued a respective decree at a government meeting.

After the decision, Ruben Vardanyan said he would not leave the [separatist] republic. According to Vardanyan, there is pressure in connection with his stay in Nagorno-Karabakh, but he will stay there. "I know there is pressure in connection with my stay in Nagorno-Karabakh, but I will note that I will not leave anywhere. I will work here," Vardanyan said.

Reportedly, Gurgen Nersisyan, the de-facto Prosecutor General of the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh, will become the State Minister of Nagorno-Karabakh. According to the media, his candidacy was supported by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

At the cabinet meeting on February 23, Nagorno-Karabakh President Arayik Harutyunyan explained his decision to fire Ruben Vardanyan. "Recently, the most discussed topic related to Nagorno-Karabakh was the relationship between Ruben Vardanyan and me, the news about the latter's position as state minister, and his dismissal. Once again, we witnessed that there are people and forces among us who are capable of destroying their own country and undermining the interests of our people to satisfy their political ambitions, to show their personal hatred and enmity towards their neighbors. In this unquote struggle, such people and forces have an advantage in the sense that they can satisfy their own desires at the expense of harming the state, and our people, while we, I mean, state bodies and officials, do not have the moral and legal opportunity to take such steps. Unfortunately, many people can show such behavior, but never Ruben Vardanyan," Harutyunyan stated. The de-facto official added: "Although each of us may have a different option regarding our next steps and the way of building the road, Ruben Vardanyan approached my position with understanding, admitting that in any case, I have the deepest knowledge of the situation, I am informed to the maximum extent in my position, and comprehensive and in-depth evaluations of information are the most important."

"I am sure that Ruben Vardanyan will stay in Nagorno-Karabakh and multiply his efforts towards the development of Nagorno-Karabakh with his active social activities. Our personal relations remain at a high level, and I greatly value the active cooperation of state bodies and officials with Mr. Vardanyan and the organizations led by him because he is devoted to the motherland and realizes the value of Nagorno-Karabakh for the entire Armenian people," he underlined.

Notably, in January, the Armenian press reported that Arayik Harutyunyan would release Ruben Vardanyan from his post and also resign himself. According to the constitution of the unrecognized republic, this will also mean the dissolution of parliament. Vardanyan then denied his resignation: "I am not going to retire, especially in the current situation. At the same time, the possible resignation of the country's president, and hence the parliament, is unacceptable. All our efforts must be multiplied to overcome the challenges facing Nagorno-Karabakh. In this situation, we have no right to serve the enemy's agenda and give up. Now we have a real opportunity to keep Nagorno-Karabakh Armenian. I appeal to everyone to political common sense and solidarity." 

Notably, 54-year-old Ruben Vardanyan worked as a businessman in Russia for many years. Vardanyan announced his plans to move to Karabakh in September 2022 and said he had renounced his Russian citizenship. A month after this step, Ruben Vardanyan was appointed State Minister of the unrecognized entity. Before receiving Armenian citizenship in June 2021, Vardanyan was the CEO of the Troika Dialog Investment Bank in Russia. His foundation, "Armenian Development Initiatives," operates in Yerevan. In 2021, Forbes magazine estimated his wealth at $1 billion. Ruben Vardanyan's name was included in the list of kleptocrats targeted for sanctions in the Putin Accountability Act bill presented in the US House of Representatives in January 2022.