Pashinyan Dismisses Chief Of Armenian Armed Forces' General Staff

MOSCOW/YEREVAN (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 25th February, 2021) Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced on Thursday that he sacked the chief of the armed forces' general staff, Onik Gasparyan.

Earlier in the day, the general staff demanded Pashinyan's resignation and warned him against using force against the Armenian people. The move was made in the wake of the dismissal of the first deputy chief of general staff, who reportedly laughed at Pashinyan's statement on Iskander missiles. Pashinyan assessed the general staff's calls as an attempt to stage a military coup.

"We have found ourselves in a difficult situation.

Yesterday and today, I made decisions to fire the first deputy chief of the general staff and the chief of the general staff. I signed documents, and after that the general staff issued the statement calling for my resignation," Pashinyan explained on Facebook.

The Armenian Defense Ministry's spokesman, Gevorg Altunyan, declined to comment on the armed forces' statement.

"Not yet," Altunyan told Sputnik, when asked if the ministry could provide any comment.

Pashinyan invited his supporters to gather at the Republic Square in Yerevan. He also pledged to address the nation soon.