YEREVAN -- Protesters in Armenia's capital scuffled with police on May 4 during another demonstration to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian over his handling of negotiations with Azerbaijan over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh region.
The situation near the parliament building remained tense on the evening of May 4 after protesters and police jostled and bottles were launched toward security forces in Yerevan, resulting in dozens of arrests.
Authorities warned protesters chanting “Armenia without Nikol” against trying to seize the parliament building, which was cordoned off by hundreds of police in riot gear. Earlier in the day truckers briefly blocked a bridge in central Yerevan, telling authorities their vehicles had broken down.
"The opposition hopes to achieve success by imitating what we have done," Pashinian told lawmakers in a speech to the National Assembly, referring to mass street protests that propelled him to power in 2018. He warned opposition parties against "crossing red lines."
The situation was initially calm as thousands of protesters gathered in the streets, but a crush began after police formed a cordon made up of several rows of security personnel.
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Demonstrators Clash With Police As Anti-Government Protests Continue In Armenia
Armenia's national security service said in a statement that the organizers of the rallies "are planning to incite demonstrators to seize the parliament building, to destabilize the country, and undermine its security and public order."
Deputies from the opposition Hayastan faction said there were people who were trying to create tension and urged the protesters not to succumb to their provocations.
Opposition leader Ishkhan Saghatelian, who has called Pashinian “a traitor” and said the street protests will force him to resign, said protests will grow and last until Pashinian steps down.
“We can speak with the authorities about only one thing -- their immediate departure,” he said.
Anti-government demonstrations over what the opposition says are concessions to Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh have been taking place since last month. Protesters on May 1 announced the beginning of a "decisive phase of the struggle" and large-scale civil disobedience actions this week.
Police said that more than 200 protesters were detained on May 3 as they temporarily blocked several streets in Yerevan's center and other provincial cities.
The protesters are calling on Pashinian to resign after he and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev agreed last month to start drafting a bilateral peace treaty to resolve the conflict around Nagorno-Karabakh and set up a joint commission on demarcating their common border during talks in Brussels.
Baku wants the peace deal to be based on five elements, including a mutual recognition of each other’s territorial integrity. Pashinian has publicly stated that the elements are acceptable to Yerevan in principle, fueling Armenian opposition claims that he is ready to recognize Azerbaijani sovereignty over Nagorno-Karabakh.
Azerbaijan regained control of parts of the breakaway region in the 2020 war, as well as seven adjacent districts that had been under the control of ethnic Armenian forces since the end of a separatist war in 1994. Some 2,000 Russian troops have been deployed to monitor the current cease-fire.
Nagorno-Karabakh, which had been under ethnic Armenian control for nearly three decades, is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan.