Opposition MP: Pashinyan, symbolizing defeat and war, has no right to  call opposition harbinger of war

ArmInfo. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, a symbol of defeat, war, and betrayal, has no right to call the opposition forces intending to participate in the country's upcoming parliamentary elections harbingers of war. Thus,  Ishkhan Saghatelyan, a representative of the Supreme Body of the  Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF Dashnaktsutyun) and a member  of parliament from the opposition "Armenia" faction, commented on  Pashinyan's statement that the rise to power of other political  forces could lead to war and the loss of not only territory but also  sovereignty.

Saghatelyan, in a video message published on his Facebook page, noted  that the Armenian prime minister even specified a specific timeframe  for this to occur. According to the MP, such statements merely  indicate that Pashinyan hopes to repeat the 2021 scenario and  maintain his power by deceiving and intimidating the Armenian people  with threats of Azerbaijan resuming the war. In this regard,  Saghatelyan recalled that Pashinyan made similar claims before the  2021 snap parliamentary elections, declaring that if elected, he  would ensure peace. Therefore, the MP called for an examination of  the reality. "Since Pashinyan's restoration to power in 2021, two  wars have erupted. In 2022, Azerbaijan launched a large-scale attack  on Armenia, resulting in over 200 deaths and the occupancy of over  240 square kilometers of territory. Heights and positions of  strategic importance fell under Azerbaijani control. A year later, in  September 2023, ethnic cleansing and forced displacement of the  Artsakh population occurred in Artsakh, resulting in hundreds of  casualties. In 2024, Pashinyan, with the same threats, told our  people that if Armenia did not make concessions in the Tavush region,  there would be war. As a result, strategic territories were  surrendered to Azerbaijan, and today it continues to intimidate the  Armenian people with Aliyev and war," Saghatelyan recalled.

As the MP explained, Pashinyan is trying to portray himself as a  guarantor of peace, but in reality, he is a guarantor of war and  defeat. All his actions, the opposition leader noted, are aimed at  intimidating the people and regaining power. "However, you personally  are the symbol of defeat, war, betrayal, surrender of the homeland,  humiliation, sacrifice, and tragedy, and you have no right to blame  other forces participating in the parliamentary elections for this,  or to pretend that you have achieved peace while we have come to  bring war. You personally are the symbol of war and defeat, and to  ensure Armenia's territorial integrity, restore its sovereignty, and  ensure the security of Armenian citizens, it is necessary to prevent  your re- emergence in the upcoming parliamentary elections, as you  personally pose a threat to our national security," the ARF Supreme  Body representative emphasized.

Ivetta Tonoyan, press secretary for Prosperous Armenia Party leader  Gagik Tsarukyan, also responded to Pashinyan's statements. She  recalled that the overwhelming majority of members of the political  team that came to power in 2018 (the ruling Civil Contract party) did  not even have employment records, and their first task was to occupy  ministerial, deputy, or other high-ranking government positions. "We  are all still facing the painful consequences of leading the country  with those who have neither a biography nor experience. Perhaps this  is why the head of today's political force feels a pronounced  hostility toward those figures who, throughout their lives, built  rather than destroyed, created good rather than destroyed values in  Armenia and Artsakh," Tonoyan concluded.

As a reminder, on March 19, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan  stated at a briefing with journalists that if other forces come to  power, the peace agenda will be revised, which would risk war-with  the risk of losing not only territory but also sovereignty. In other  words, as the Armenian prime minister explained, they are allegedly  "preparing for a new September war with grave consequences." The  prime minister even specified a timeframe: he estimated that this  could happen soon after the elections-by the fall at the latest.   When asked further, "Why would the opposition want a war?" the prime  minister noted that this would allow these forces to become leaders  of an outpost, not a state, which would be financially advantageous  for them, as it would allow them to preserve their assets abroad.