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Opposition leader and deputy parliament speaker Ishkhan Saghatelyan on Friday dismissed claims that the protest movement aimed at forcing Nikol Pashinyan and his cabinet to resign is dying down.

“The Resistance Movement cannot die down under any circumstances, because its suspension or collapse would mean a defeat for the Armenian people,” Saghatelyan, who represents the Hayastan bloc, told a briefing in Yerevan’s France Square on Friday.

He highlighted that daily marches and rallies held as part of the civil disobedience campaign launched on 2 May attracted some 50,000 people.

“It’s a purely Armenian and nationwide movement and will definitely succeed,” the lawmaker said.

As one of its key achievements, he stressed that the “whole world now knows that Armenians are not going to concede defeat and are not ready for new concessions [to Azerbaijan].”

Also, he said talks are underway between the opposition and various public and political forces to give fresh impetus to the protest movement.

“There can be no retreat in any case. All our discussions focus on how to expand the movement, fix the mistakes and move forward with greater vigor. We believe that what we have done so far has been very effective, but a new strategy is needed now. Thus, changes are possible in our steps,” Saghatelyan said.