Mr. Manukyan has once again ended his political career, they just don’t tell him to avoid dampening his spirits - Simonian

We are in a very extreme situation both due to the actions of the opposition and the calls for violence. This was stated by the Vice Speaker of the National Assembly, Alen Simonian, during a press briefing with journalists in the National Assembly.

“Every rally features calls for violence, insurrection, and the seizure of buildings,” Simonian announced. Regarding the statement made by My Step faction MP Andranik Kocharyan, that if they are talking about seizing buildings, they should remember that the state has a monopoly on the right to use force, Simonian reminded of the events that took place on the night of November 9-10, noting that these actions were directed by various factions of the opposition and could have received a harsher response at that time: “Those who carried out those actions will receive an appropriate response within the framework of the law.”

Reporters reminded Simonian about the seizure of the Radio building during the days of the revolution, to which the Vice Speaker responded that all actions during the revolution were peaceful in nature: “A criminal case has been initiated regarding the entry into the Radio building, and in this case, criminal cases will also be initiated, and the authorities will act within their powers.”

Simonian also recalled that one of the police officers had attempted to use a weapon, but when he saw that the people were not inclined towards violence, he backed down.

Addressing Vazgen Manukyan's statement that if the authorities raise the stakes, they too will raise them, Simonian replied: “Vazgen Manukyan is an old magician because the authorities do not have a problem of raising stakes; the authority is an authority, which has police, NSS, Internal Troops, and so on. So how should we raise the stakes with them? Mr. Manukyan, I believe, has once again completed his political career, they just don’t tell him to avoid dampening his spirits.”

According to Simonian, it is evident that Vazgen Manukyan is a ballast for the opposition forces today, and they are trying in every way to separate themselves from him.

Speaking about the rally on Saturday, Simonian said he respects the citizens gathered there, but emphasized that across the country, Nikol Pashinyan’s rating is the highest, and no other leader in Armenia has had such a high rating as Nikol Pashinyan has today. According to Simonian, this is precisely why the opposition did not want to go for snap elections.