The International Coverage of Armenia’s “Velvet Revolution”

On 23 April, the Armenian Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan resigned amid mass protests. "The street movement is against my tenure. I am fulfilling your demand,” - Mr Sargsyan said in a statement and also added, that "Nikol Pashinyan was right. I was wrong.”

The Washington Post writes, “As Pashinyan pushed to complete the bloodless revolution that aims to shake off decades of authoritarian rule and widespread corruption in the tiny country, jubilant young protesters danced in triumph before columns of riot police who had closed the main streets. In the blazing sunshine, people clambered on top of honking cars in excitement, while shopkeepers came out on the streets to wave and cheer in solidarity. Demonstrations continued as well in villages and towns across the impoverished country.”

The New York Times writes about the break-off of the planned negotiations for the “peaceful transfer of power”: “Street demonstrations resumed in the Armenian capital of Yerevan on Wednesday at the urging of an opposition leader, after negotiations stalled on the way forward after the unexpected resignation of the prime minister.” The author further notes, that “various political factions are now locked in tense standoff over how to proceed. While there is a consensus that snap parliamentary elections are likely, opposition leaders are adamant that they should not be run by Republican Party officials, whom they deeply distrust.”

Prepared by Marina Muradyan