Lragir.am quotes a former Azerbaijani foreign minister, Tofik Zulfugarov, as predicting that Friday’s meeting of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian will end in failure. He says that the conflicting parties will fail to bridge their substantial differences on the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The online publication suggests that summit’s possible failure would lead to either a continued “imitation” of peace talks or an escalation of tensions of the Karabakh frontlines. “The Armenian side is reviewing the whole negotiating process and demanding a public interpretation [by Baku and the mediators] of the proposed principles [of the Karabakh settlement,]” it says.
“Zhoghovurd” describes as “quite sharp” Pashinian’s criticism of the United States which he voiced on Thursday. “It is the first time that Pashinian spoke about the United States in such a tough manner,” comments the paper. It notes that he also criticized the European Union during and after a July 2018 visit to Brussels and stressed the importance of respecting Armenia’s sovereignty in his first talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“Why did at least 95 percent of the public support the revolution in April last year?” writes “Haykakan Zhamanak.” “Because at least 95 percent of the public felt that Armenia needs radical changes, and in all areas.” The pro-government daily does not exclude that Pashinian’s approval ratings have fallen since then. But it insists that even those Armenians who are now disappointed with the prime minister continue to demand radical changes. They are only unhappy with the pace of those changes, it says. Some of them may also not like government efforts to make every citizen pay taxes, the planned downsizing of the state bureaucracy or a perceived lack of individuals jailed for corruption, according to the paper.
(Lilit Harutiunian)
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