These Protests Only Contribute to the Return of Captives and Not the Opposite: Vazgen Manukyan

Everyone eagerly awaits that the president must behave like a president, said Vazgen Manukyan, the prime ministerial candidate of the "Homeland Salvation Movement," at a rally today, referring to the actions of Armenian President Armen Sarkissian regarding the current situation surrounding the Chief of General Staff.

"The fact that he did nothing has led to an escalation of the situation; we are still in Plan A. This is a disobedience of peaceful citizens, and I think this action has convinced more people that it is impossible to maintain this state for long," he said.

Vazgen Manukyan noted that the Constitution states that the Chief of General Staff is an appointed position with a five-year term; therefore, the decree on the dismissal of the Chief of Staff by Nikol Pashinyan is completely illegal.

"This means that what Nikol Pashinyan is doing is a repeat disruption of constitutional order. I believe that elections cannot be held under Nikol Pashinyan's rule, and I absolutely do not agree that there will be no fraud; our entire life has been falsified, and it is natural that there will be fraud," he stated, noting that Nikol Pashinyan's approval rating has fallen day by day.

Manukyan emphasized that Ilham Aliyev benefits from Nikol Pashinyan remaining in power. "This means that, on the contrary, fearing that this government will change, he might gesture and return some captives even more. In other words, these protests only contribute to the return of captives and not the opposite," he said.

Vazgen Manukyan observed that nonetheless, the issue of Artsakh was not resolved through war and will remain unresolved until a natural solution is found, and that solution must be based on the principle of self-determination of nations.