“Zhamanak” weighs in on the controversy caused by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s decision to appoint the former chief of Armenian military intelligence, Major-General Arshak Karapetian, as his national security adviser. Karapetian was sacked by Serzh Sarkisian following the April 2016 war in Karabakh. Pashinian insisted on Wednesday that there is no evidence that the Karapetian-led intelligence service failed to warn the Armenian military of the Azerbaijani offensive.
“So it can be inferred from the prime minister’s remarks that in the run-up to the April war Armenian intelligence submitted timely reports on enemy troop movements but the former authorities did not act on them, displaying criminal negligence or indifference,” writes “Zhoghovurd.” “There were lots of such speculations in the wake of the war. Such suspicions always existed. Common sense suggests that Pashinian’s statement should be followed by legal actions.” The pro-Pashinian paper calls for the launch of a criminal investigation.
Lragir.am says that the April 2016 hostilities must not be exploited by anyone for “solving internal issues.” “The same thing was done against the former authorities and now seems to be done against the current ones,” writes the publication. It calls for an objective debate on lessons of that war.
“Haykakan Zhamanak” says that Pashinian’s critics have seized upon Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov’s claim that “for the first time in a long time” he and Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanian reached “mutual understanding” at their last meeting held in Milan on December 5. The paper edited by Pashinian’s wife, Anna Hakobian, dismisses “conspiracy theories” about Pashinian’s readiness to make disproportionate concessions to Azerbaijan. “Those who are responsible for Azerbaijani state propaganda can be proud of themselves,” it says. “Some people in Armenia do believe in what they say. Fortunately, nobody in Armenia believes those people.”
(Lilit Harutiunian)
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