The Armenian Parliament Will Vote Next Week to Elect a New Prime Minister

The Armenian Parliament announced that it will hold an extraordinary session next week to elect a new Prime Minister, while two senior officials from the country have traveled to Moscow for discussions with Russian officials. On Thursday, April 26, the Parliament stated that it would vote on May 1 for the new Prime Minister. The former Prime Minister of Armenia, Serge Sargsyan, resigned on Monday following two weeks of street protests in several cities in Armenia. Meanwhile, Nikol Pashinyan, a parliamentary representative and leader of the Civil Contract protesters, met with parliamentary factions on Thursday to pave the way for his own premiership. Despite the exit of the HKK party from the ruling coalition, Serge Sargsyan's party still holds a majority in the Armenian Parliament with 58 out of 105 seats. Serge Sargsyan, who served as President of Armenia for two consecutive terms, became Prime Minister earlier this year. Protests in Armenia began two weeks ago, with opponents accusing Serge Sargsyan's government of corruption and claiming he intends to consolidate power by appointing 'incompetent allies' to various positions. Meanwhile, on Thursday, the Kremlin announced that President Vladimir Putin discussed the ongoing crisis with his Armenian counterpart, Armen Sargsyan. On Wednesday, the Russian ambassador in Yerevan also met with Nikol Pashinyan. Reports indicate that the acting Foreign Minister of Armenia, along with the acting Prime Minister, has traveled to Moscow for discussions with Russian officials. Reports suggest a meeting took place between these officials and Sergey Lavrov, the Russian Foreign Minister, but Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, denied reports of discussions between Armenian officials and special representatives of Vladimir Putin. Russia has a military base in Armenia and has emphasized the 'internal nature of the recent protests in that country,' stating that it is closely monitoring developments in Armenia. In Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, a demonstration in support of Nikol Pashinyan's premiership was held on Wednesday, with local media reporting that tens of thousands participated. Mr. Pashinyan called on his supporters to protest on Thursday, stating, 'Protests will increase across Armenia so that officials can hear our voice.' On Thursday, protesters blocked main roads leading to the capital, shouting 'Victory.'