Will Valeri Osipyan Disrupt the Political Calm?

The newspaper "Zhamanak" reports that former police chief Valeri Osipyan has also resigned from his position as the chief advisor to the Prime Minister, as confirmed by the Prime Minister's press secretary in accordance with his application.

Osipyan stepped down from the police chief post just days after the high-profile dismissal of the NSS director Arthur Vanetsyan. His removal was politically less turbulent, and moreover, following his departure, he was appointed as chief advisor to the Prime Minister, suggesting that Nikol Pashinyan might have removed Osipyan for inefficiency, but retained a certain sentiment toward him morally, which was highlighted against the backdrop of the "crossfire" involving Arthur Vanetsyan.

However, following Osipyan's dismissal, reports emerged regarding the three apartments and a luxury car he allegedly acquired during his tenure, which has stirred up a so-called "corruption tint" in the case of the former police chief's removal. Did this play a role in Nikol Pashinyan ultimately dismissing Valeri Osipyan from the chief advisor position as well?

Media reports had suggested that Valeri Osipyan was close to one of the wealthy Armenians in Russia, who gifted him the apartments and the car. However, historically, officials have explained a significant amount of their mythical assets through gifts. Of course, in Osipyan's case, we are not talking about mere myths, but nonetheless, everything starts from something small. On the other hand, if there is such a risk, the issue should not be limited solely to dismissal, as it raises questions about what decisions were made in exchange for those "gifts."

Of course, all these questions hold "rights to existence" when there is a lack of at least somewhat clear official explanations related to the dismissals. Although it is beyond doubt that even in the clearest cases, there will be those who do not believe and disseminate "alternative" hypotheses and narratives.

In this situation, one must understand whether Valeri Osipyan's "historic" role in the Armenian reform phase has concluded, leading him to go on a so-called "earned" rest, or if his mission is still unfinished, and Osipyan might still "disrupt" the political calm.

Ultimately, it is important to recall his statement regarding leaving the police chief position, in which he noted that he would speak about the reasons later. Is that statement still valid, or will the former police chief, who received apartments and a car as gifts during his tenure, refrain from further comments because everything has already been said by those gifts?

For more details, see today’s issue of the newspaper.