Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan Resigned Because Azerbaijan Was Deemed Profitable

Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

JAKARTA - Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan resigned from his post on Monday, November 16. The resignation was carried out by Zohrab in line with the strong protest of the Armenians because they were considered to have benefited their eternal enemy, Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

According to CNA, calls for resignation to Zohrab continue to come from the Armenian people. Zohrab has been deemed to have failed to turn a profit in three ceasefire negotiations. For this, the Armenian people became outraged. As a result, thousands of people took to the streets demanding the resignation of the Minister.

Not only Zohrab, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan was also demanded by the protesters to resign. This was done by thousands of Armenians because Pashinyan was seen as the culprit of the truce that benefited Azerbaijan. Moreover, in the war, 2,300 Armenian troops died in the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Even so, Pashniyan was reluctant to admit that it was entirely his fault. Even if he claims responsibility for the loss of several Armenian territories, this is the best step that can be done so that Armenia does not suffer greater losses and can save many lives.

On that basis, Pashniyan would not back down. In fact, Pashniyan vowed to stay in the seat of government and promised to bring stability to Armenia for the foreseeable future.

Previously, the roots of the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh date back centuries, due to competition between Christian Armenians and Muslim populations under Turkish and Persian influence. In the late 19th century, this area became part of the Russian Empire. At the end of World War I, the Soviets established the Nagorno-Karabakh autonomous region under the Soviet Socialist Republic of Azerbaijan even though the population is predominantly Armenian.

Then, since the early 1990s, ethnic Armenians have been in control of the military in Nagorno-Karabakh and most of the surrounding areas that have entered Azerbaijan. However, they have lost influence in many areas, including in the surrounding cities.