By Arto Manoukian
Special to the Mirror-Spectator & ABAKA
YEREVAN — The National Democratic Axis (Bever) opposition party held a demonstration in front of Yerevan’s Opera House on September 21. There were many speakers addressing a crowd which appeared to be composed of 2,000 to 2,500 party followers and curious passersby.
The speakers primarily delivered an anti-Russian message. President Vladimir Putin and his attitude towards Armenia were harshly criticized. Among the speakers was a Russian citizen who criticized Russia and its leader.
Meanwhile, numerous American flags were visible onstage and in the crowd. The US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Armenia and her remarks of “Armenian democracy vs. Azerbaijani autocracy” were loudly presented and applauded. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s intervention against the September 14 Azerbaijani military aggression was claimed to be the main reason for the halt in the Azerbaijani attacks. In sum, the attitude was that the US is Armenia’s savior and Armenia must liberate itself from Putin’s oppressive attitude.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s pre-2020 war statement that Karabakh is Armenia and that’s it was reiterated.
Such public events are frequent in today’s Armenia, and in the near future there might be another one defending the Russian presence and criticizing the Western powers.
Police presence and intervention forces were discretely situated but at the ready, evidently in case the crowd’s sentiments got out of hand.
