Armenian PM to sack defence chief - Yerevan daily

Armenia is discussing Defence Minister Suren Papikyan's removal from his office by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

The remarks came from the Yerevan-based daily Hraparak, Caliber.Az reports.

"Government sources claim that the issue of Suren Papikyan's release from the defence minister post has been resolved, and the mechanism for its implementation is being discussed. The question is, where will he go, and who will replace him? Despite the fact that the name of the chairman of the National Assembly's defence commission, Andranik Kocharyan, is being exaggerated in the press as Papikyan's successor, however, he is apparently spreading these rumours," the newspaper writes.

The newspaper cites its unnamed sources as saying that Pashinyan is inclined to appoint to the post National Security Service Directo Armen Abazyan, "who after the war negotiated with Azerbaijani officials in various formats, both on the exchange of prisoners and on the delimitation and demarcation of the border and found a common language with them, which is one of the most valuable factors for Pashinyan".