Armenia swears in Sarkissian as president, Sargsyan closes in on newly powerful PM spot

Armenia swears in Sarkissian as president, Sargsyan closes in on newly powerful PM spot
Armen Sarkissian's role as president will be largely ceremonial in line with the requirements of the vote in the 2015 constitutional referendum. / Office of the President of Armenia.
By Carmen Valache in Berlin April 10, 2018

Armenia on April 9 swore in its new president, Armen Sarkissian, a former scholar and diplomat who has mostly lived in the UK for the past two decades. 

Sarkissian took over from Serzh Sargsyan (no relation), whose second term ended on the same day, and will largely serve in a ceremonial role. Armenians voted in a December 2015 referendum to switch from a semi-presidential to a parliamentary republic starting this year. The head of state will now be voted into office by parliament, rather than through direct elections. In March, the Armenian National Assembly voted for Sarkissian to become the next head of state with an overwhelming majority. 

In his acceptance speech, Sarkissian urged the dignitaries and MPs in the audience to  “jointly and consistently fight against negative and vicious practices in the state system, society and our environment: from corruption to social injustice, from indifference to irresponsibility”.

Sarkissian's appointment took place in a closed parliamentary session that was held in a concert hall in the capital Yerevan, and to which only a few handpicked journalists were allowed. Armenia is known for its corruption, and critics say it is increasingly beginning to resemble its even more corrupt and dictatorial arch-enemy Azerbaijan. In the words of Nikol Pashinian, an opposition political leader: “This is what we mean when we say that [the outgoing President] Serzh Sarkisian is building a deceitful Azerbaijani-style state.”

As per the new constitution which reflects the results of the 2015 referendum, the Armenian government led by Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan handed in its resignation on the same day. The parliament is now tasked with appointing a new government before April 17. 

According to the local edition of Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty, Karapetyan and Sargsyan held a private meeting on April 7, during which they decided to split the leadership of the new government between themselves. Sargsyan is the chairman of the ruling Republican Party (HHK) and Karapetyan its deputy chairman, and they will maintain these positions in the government; the former is largely expected to become prime minister, and the former deputy prime minister. 

In televised remarks on April 7, Sargsyan said: “We [he and Karapetyan] have worked together very well in this period but must also bear in mind that our party won a popular vote of confidence in the [April 2017] parliamentary elections and that the Republican Party has a mandate to form a government until 2022 [...] And that means the burden of responsibility for the country’s development will be on the Republican Party and us in the first instance: me, as the party’s chairman, and you, as the party’s first deputy chairman."

On April 9, Karapetyan seconded his likely new boss' statements, by stating: “We decided to propose to our party comrades maintaining the current government configuration in this period: namely, to nominate Serzh Sargsyan as the number one figure” upon handing in his government's resignation. 

HHK and its coalition partner ARF command a simple majority in the legislative body (65 out of 105 seats). However, it is expected that the largest opposition party, the Tsarukyan Alliance (31 seats), will support Sargsyan and his bid for power, just like it did with Sarkissian's candidature for presidency. 

News

Dismiss