Diplomat: Armenia is threatened by the prospect of continued power  usurpation by Pashinyan and internal civil clashes

ArmInfo. Alongside external serious challenges and Azerbaijani pressure, Armenia is also threatened by the prospect of continued power usurpation by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and severe internal civil clashes, according to former Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskaniyan. The diplomat noted that  given the tragic, disastrous, and nightmarish situation Armenia  currently faces, representatives of socio-political circles are  putting forward various hypotheses about who brought Pashinyan to  power, ranging from conspiracy theories to the hand of a powerful  "third force".

In this regard, the former head of the Armenian Foreign Ministry  stated that Pashinyan came to power through the will of the people,  and various hypotheses of a different nature are detached from  reality "My conviction stems from many years of work and interaction  with these so-called "third forces" at various levels. The world does  not work like that. That different forces have different interests in  our region is undeniable. But that does not mean those forces united,  discovered Pashinyan, made him the leader of a revolution, and are  keeping him in power. This unrealistic narrative only serves to  undeservedly elevate Pashinyan. He was brought to power by the  people-and the people can correct their mistake," Oskanian wrote. At  the same time, the former head of the Foreign Ministry believes that  Pashinyan, who  came to power, sought to achieve success, thereby  outshining the achievements of his predecessors. 

According to him, the myth that Pashinyan was  brought in by some  forces to hand over Nagorno-karabagh weaken Armenia and dismember it,  has no connection to reality. "In 2018, Pashinyan was simply  unprepared for the challenges of leading a state in such a complex  region. He was inexperienced, uninformed, inept, unfamiliar with  international relations, and at the same time overly self-confident.  He failed for these reasons Seeking some conspiracy behind it is  pointless and fruitless," the diplomat wrote on his Facebook page

Oskanian also believes that the Armenian prime minister himself is  well aware that he has brought a great disaster upon the Armenian  people, one for which he will not be forgiven. However, as the former  head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted, Pashinyan, instead of  leaving the "scene" after the war, chose to enter a phase of  self-justification and has since tried to "explain" the events with  supposedly "innovative" ideas. " In essence, this is a trap-a vicious  cycle that Pashinyan has thrown himself into. The fact that nearly  everything he says aligns with Azerbaijan's interests is, in my view,  not the result of a conspiracy, but of this same vicious cycle: under  his leadership, Armenia's national interests have become so  undefended that, unable to protect them, Pashinyan is forced to  invent arguments suggesting that what's transpiring is the only  viable option," the diplomat assured.

The former Foreign Minister is confident that Pashinyan's lack of  knowledge on how to fix this situation will only deepen the  anti-national rhetoric, making Armenia's position even more  vulnerable, with further irreversible losses. The diplomat called the  current position of the Armenian Prime Minister unenviable.   According to Oskanian, the opposition must also understand that  Pashinyan is aware that losing power for him is a matter of "life and  death." " This means that, alongside external serious challenges and  Azerbaijani pressure, Armenia is also threatened by the prospect of  continued power usurpation and severe internal civil clashes. The  only way to avoid this is to turn Pashinyan's departure from power  into a more acceptable choice than the "life or death" scenario," the  former official noted. 

The diplomat added that Pashinyan must resign for the simple reason  that he has neither the ability to lead the country, nor the support  of any external ally. "Today, Pashinyan still has the opportunity to  step down peacefully-by acknowledging that he has simply proven  himself unprepared and incapable, while also recognizing the  inevitability of being held accountable before the law. The  opposition, for its part, must also accept this option, as any  alternative would turn into a 'life or death' dilemma-heightening the  temptation for Pashinyan to usurp power and increasing the likelihood  of internal conflict," the former Foreign Minister concluded.