Nezavisimaya Gazeta: If the ‘peace agenda’ fails, even Pashinyan’s supporters will accept his failure in office

In a speech to the National Assembly, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced the necessity of halting the Nagorno-Karabakh movement to establish peace with Azerbaijan and secure the future of Armenian statehood.

The opposition believes that the prime minister is making one concession after another to Baku, according to Nezavisimaya Gazeta.

Anton Yevstratov, an associate professor at Russian-Armenian University, said in an interview with the outlet that Pashinyan’s comments, including this one, stem from a desire to establish peace with Baku at all costs. If the “peace agenda” does not culminate in the conclusion of an agreement, even Pashinyan’s supporters will decide that he has completely failed in his role as prime minister.

In Yevstratov’s opinion, it is difficult to say how many people support Pashinyan’s policies. “In any case, the support that Pashinyan’s team had at the beginning of its governance is no longer there and, most likely, will not return,” the expert believes.

At the same time, Yevstratov does not believe that Azerbaijan will agree to sign a peace treaty with Armenia in the foreseeable future. First, Baku does not suffer in any way from the lack of agreement, and second, the Azerbaijani authorities see Pashinyan’s willingness to make concessions as an opportunity to further strengthen their positions.