“Aravot” editorializes on the 21st anniversary of a Russian-mediated ceasefire agreement that stopped the Armenian-Azerbaijani war in Nagorno-Karabakh. “Now, more than ever before, we realize that the possibility of the resumption of hostilities will not be eliminated as long as there is a no-war-no-peace situation in the Karabakh conflict zone,” writes the paper.
“Zhamanak” laments what it sees as a lack of a real “political life” in Armenia. “Practically speaking, we also have no opposition as such because there are no internal debates on crucial external challenges facing the state and there are no conceptual alternatives needed for [influencing] public opinion,” writes the paper.
“Chorrord Ishkhanutyun” shrugs off President Serzh Sarkisian’s claims that he is still not sure that Armenia should be transformed into a parliamentary republic. The pro-opposition paper insists that such a radical transformation is the reason why Sarkisian is seeking to amend the Armenian constitution in the first place. “Only in that way can he retain his status as the country’s most powerful state official after completing his second presidential term [in 2018,]” it says.
“Hayots Ashkhar” says that the political situation in Armenia is unusually calm at the moment. “On the other hand, one may say that this is a temporary lull,” writes the paper. It goes on to attack Founding Parliament, a radical opposition movement, saying that the group planned to “stir up trouble” in Yerevan only on April 24 but was thwarted by the Armenian authorities. The paper argues that Founding Parliament staged no further anti-government protests even after the release of its five leaders arrested in early April.
(Naira Bulghadarian)