11:21, 14 March 2021

Activists tried to prevent Pashinyan from leaving President's residence

A protest action at the residence of President Armen Sargsyan, March 13, 2021. Photo by Tigran Petrosyan for the "Caucasian Knot"

Protesters have blocked the gates of the presidential residence and confronted the police. Activists failed to prevent Nikol Pashinyan, the Armenian Prime Minister, from leaving after his meeting with President Armen Sargsyan.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that President Armen Sargsyan (Sarkisyan) invited Pashinyan and opposition leaders to a meeting to discuss ways out of the political crisis. However, the format of the meeting proposed by the president turned out to be unrealizable.

Reinforced police units were pulled up to the president's residence, where Sargsyan and Pashinyan met. Protesters tried to prevent the prime minister's motorcade from leaving by approaching the residence gate.

There was a small skirmish of protesters with law enforcers, but no serious confrontation occurred.

As a result, activists failed to stop the prime minister, who, after the meeting was over, managed to leave the residence by another way. Nevertheless, Pashinyan's opponents treat the action as a success. "This is how he will face obstacles and will not be able to move around the city calmly," Gerasim Vardanyan, a protester, has stated.

The Armenian opposition is holding protests demanding Pashinyan's resignation after the conclusion of a ceasefire on Karabakh on November 9, 2020. Protests intensified after Pashinyan decreed to dismiss the Chief of the General Staff; the latter had called on the Premier to resign; but he treated it as an attempt of a coup d'etat.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 13, 2021 at 04:35 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Author: Tigran Petrosyan

Source: CK correspondent