The statements of the representatives of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia, aimed at justifying the nomination of the current president Serzh Sargsyan for the position of prime minister of the republic, are growing louder as April approached. In accordance with the constitutional amendments, the real power in the state will be delegated to the prime minister in April, while the post of the president will be of representative nature.
The transition to a parliamentary form of government was presented by Yerevan as a step towards democratization, and in no way as a way of preserving power by the incumbent president - a similar scheme was unsuccessfully tried by the former Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili. On April 10, 2014, President Serzh Sargsyan said: "I officially declare that I, Serzh Sargsyan, will never again run for president of the Republic of Armenia. If a system is chosen that does not correspond to my desire - I mean the parliamentary form of government - in the final discussion, then I will not pretend to be prime minister either."
After four years it becomes clear that Serzh Sargsyan is the real man of his word: he give it if he wants, he takes it back if he ceases to want. Spokesman of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia, Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of Armenia, Eduard Sharmazanov, told Tert.am that regardless of what was said on April 10, 2014, Serzh Sargsyan remains a statesman who is guided not by his desires, but by state interests. Sharmazanov then placed Sargsyan on the same level with Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Winston Churchill and the legendary Charles de Gaulle. They, according to the vice-speaker, also made public statements, but after a while they took steps that contradicted their previous statements. "Any statement is made at different periods of time, proceeding from different realities," Sharmazanov said, defending his president, who is preparing to become prime minister.
Sargsyan should not to be afraid of sharp criticism from the West - by signing an agreement on partnership with the EU last November, he satisfied the interests of Europeans at this stage and protected himself from possible attacks from the EU. Russia also sees Sargsyan as a reliable and pliable partner. Both the West and Russia understand that Serzh Sargsyan, with his critically low popular support level of 18% (which was reflected in the last report of the Caucasian barometer), is not a legitimate leader of the Armenian state. It is quite easy to control and direct such nominal leaders, since they are entirely dependent on resource assistance provided from the outside.
Thus, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan is preparing to hand over power to himself, violating his own promise. A retraction gives him a chance to enter history along with such major personalities as Winston Churchill and Charles de Gaulle.
