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“Never in our history has there been an Armenian leader who would have received such a reception as Nikol Pashinyan did in Syunik Province,” Alternative NGO Co-Chairman Narek Mantashyan told a news conference on Tuesday, referring to the angry protests the prime minister faced during his visit to the border region last week.

According to him, the move of Syunik residents has very objective reasons. In addition, he denounced the fact that Pashinyan was accompanied by Russian peacekeepers during his trip as “disgusting”, adding this is precisely the result of his "inglorious" rule.

“Every day before going to sleep, we do not know how much the Armenian borders will be cut in the morning. This disgusting government continues to make the borders of our country smaller. And this resulted in his reception by rebellious citizens of Syunik. This move was also pre planned, because the vile authorities wanted to justify the surrender of Syunik at least for themselves. I am very glad that Syunik managed to fight back with its natural immunity. Syunik, which is Armenia’s backbone, broke the stereotype that Nikol should be welcomed with bread and salt. He must realize that now he will be greeted with insults everywhere,” he said.

Narek Mantashyan also touched upon yesterday's meeting of Armenia’s second President Robert Kocharyan with his supporters. He noted that the ex-president, being a person who does not “utter words merely to flatter the people”, promised that after his possible win in the upcoming parliamentary elections, Armenia will turn into a large construction site where people will feel the change in everyday life.

As for Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev's reported visit to Syunik Province, Narek Mantashyan stated that the rhetoric of Nikol Pashinyan and Aliyev on the Syunik issue coincides.

“On the day when Nikol Pashinyan was in Syunik, he reportedly said that if they did not agree to the creation of the corridor peacefully, they would be forced to do so. Only the leader of an enemy state can use such rhetoric,” he added.