A large crowd of demonstrators gathered in the Armenian capital Yerevan on Thursday demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan over his decision to cede several border villages to neighbour and long-time rival Azerbaijan, Armenian media reported.
Outraged people turned out to protest in Yerevan after Azerbaijan regained full control of Karabakh province, which was earlier ruled by ethnic Armenians throughout the 1990s. Azerbaijan recaptured much of the breakaway territory after a six-week war in 2020. In September 2023, Azerbaijani forces launched a lightning strike that forced Armenian authorities in Karabakh to negotiate with the assistance of Russian troops.
Armenia agreed to give up part of the territory to Azerbaijan after the two countries signed an agreement in April 2024 over a section of the border that would pass through four Armenian villages in the Tavush region. According to Armen Press, more than 100,000 people left Nagorno-Karabakh, where Azerbaijan is violating their human rights.
Pashinyan justified the land compromises as a means to achieve peace with Baku. However, the decision sparked weeks of protests in which demonstrators blocked significant roads to force him to change his mind.
The Movement for Tavush, together with Bagrat Archbishop Galstanyan, a diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, organised the protests. Archbishop Galstanyan has since launched his candidacy for prime minister, saying he intends to “stop the destruction of our homeland.” Hovik Aghazaryan, a senior MP from Pashinian’s Civil Pact party, called his candidacy “illegal” because of Galstanyan’s dual Canadian citizenship.
One of the demonstrators, 67-year-old Artur Sargsyan, said:
“We demand an immediate resignation of Nikol (Pashinyan). I had fought in two wars with Azerbaijan and will not let him give away our lands.”
