Armenia PM says unprepared for speaker’s decision to step back

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said he had not anticipated the decision by parliament speaker Alen Simonyan to forgo a mandate in the newly elected National Assembly, describing the situation as unexpected and requiring further consideration.

“I did not plan in advance that Mr Simonyan would not be the Chairman of the National Assembly or would not be a deputy of the National Assembly. This is a new situation; we will discuss it,” Pashinyan said on Thursday, July 2, in response to a journalist’s question, quoted by Armenian media, as per Caliber.Az.

The prime minister added that he had not prepared any proposals for Simonyan, stressing that the development had caught him off guard.

“If I had a proposal now, it would mean that I had been preparing from the outset, planning, arranging everything. I had not thought about anything like that, that is, the situation is new for me, and therefore I still have to form my position,” he said.

Simonyan announced on July 2 that he would not take up a seat in the new parliament, citing a desire to rest after five years of demanding legislative work and to focus on his personal life. He added, however, that he does not intend to withdraw from active politics.

By Tamilla Hasanova