Vazgen Sargsyan was an Armenian military commander and politician. He was the first Defence Minister of Armenia from 1991 to 1992 and then from 1995 to 1999. He served as Armenia's Prime Minister from 11 June 1999 until his assassination on 27 October of that year. He rose to prominence during the mass movement for the unification of Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia in the late 1980s and led Armenian volunteer groups during the early clashes with Azerbaijani forces. Appointed Defence Minister by President Levon Ter-Petrosyan soon after Armenia's independence from the Soviet Union in late 1991, Sargsyan became the most prominent commander of Armenian forces during the Nagorno-Karabakh War. In different positions, he regulated the military operations in the war area until 1994, when a ceasefire was reached ending the war with the de facto unification of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic with Armenia.
Levon Hakobi Ter-Petrosyan, also known by his initials LTP, is an Armenian politician. He was the first President of Armenia from 1991 to 1998. A senior researcher at the Matenadaran Institute of Ancient Manuscripts, he led the Karabakh movement for the unification of the Armenian-populated Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia in 1988. After Armenia's independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Ter-Petrosyan was elected president in October 1991 with overwhelming public support. He led the country through the Nagorno-Karabakh War with neighboring Azerbaijan, during which Armenia supported the Republic of Artsakh in fighting against Azerbaijan.
The Armenian parliament shooting, commonly known in Armenia as October 27, was a terrorist attack on the Armenian National Assembly in the capital Yerevan on October 27, 1999, by a group of five armed men led by Nairi Hunanyan that, among others, killed the two de facto decision-makers in the country's political leadership—Prime Minister Vazgen Sargsyan and Parliament Speaker Karen Demirchyan. Their reform-minded coalition had won a majority in the parliamentary election held in May of that year and had practically sidelined President Robert Kocharyan from the political scene.
Aram Karapetyan is an Armenian politician. In 1985 Karapetyan graduated from Yerevan Polytechnic Institute. He also worked in the Russian State Duma, the Duma Council for National Security, and the upper chamber of Russia's Federal Assembly. Leader of the New Times party, in 2003 Karapetyan unsuccessfully ran for President of Armenia, earning only 2.8% of the votes. Karapetyan was arrested on 24 February 2008 for demonstrating against the election of Armenian then Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan and charged with false denunciation, charges that were eventually dropped in April 2009.
Raffi K. Richard Hovannisian is an Armenian politician, the first Foreign Minister of Armenia and the founding leader of the national liberal Heritage party. He is the founder of the Armenian Center for National and International Studies, the country's first independent research center.
Jirair Sefilian is a Lebanese-born Armenian military commander and political activist. In 1992 he became the commander of the Shushi special military battalion, playing a significant role during the Battle of Shusha. In 1997-1998 Sefilian was the Artsakh Defense Army Brigade Commander. He is campaigning for regime change in Armenia and against any territorial concessions to Azerbaijan. Sefilian is the leader of the Founding Parliament opposition group. He is also the co-founder of the New Armenia Public Salvation Front.
Nikol Pashinyan is an Armenian politician serving as Prime Minister of Armenia since 8 May 2018. He is a former journalist and editor.
The Armenian National Congress is a political party in Armenia, led by former President Levon Ter-Petrosyan and formed in 2008. Its direct predecessor was the Pan-Armenian National Movement.
Karen Vilhelmi Karapetyan is an Armenian politician who was Prime Minister of Armenia from September 2016 until April 2018. He was previously Mayor of Yerevan, the capital, from 2010 to 2011.
The 2011 Armenian protests were a series of civil demonstrations aimed at provoking political reforms and concessions from both the government of Armenia and the civic government of Yerevan, its capital and largest city. Protesters demanded President Serzh Sargsyan release political prisoners, prosecute those responsible for the deaths of opposition activists after the 2008 presidential election and institute democratic and socioeconomic reforms, including the right to organise in Freedom Square in downtown Yerevan. They also protested against Yerevan Mayor Karen Karapetyan for banning the opposition from Freedom Square and barring vendors and traders from the city streets. The opposition bloc Armenian National Congress, which has played a major role in organising and leading the demonstrations, had also called for a snap election and the resignation of the government.
Presidential elections were held in Armenia on 18 February 2013. In the run-up to the elections, Armenian's first President Levon Ter-Petrosyan and one of the richest men in the country Gagik Tsarukyan, leader of the second largest parliamentary party Prosperous Armenia, withdrew from the race in December 2012. Many believed that no candidate would be able to challenge incumbent President Serzh Sargsyan, others stated that people see "absence of alternatives" and these factors caused great apathy among the public.
Various political and civil groups staged anti-government protests in Armenia in 2013. The first series of protests were held following the 2013 presidential election and were led by the former presidential candidate Raffi Hovannisian. Hovannisian, who, according to official results, lost to incumbent Serzh Sargsyan, denounced the results claiming they were rigged. Starting on 19 February, Hovannisian and his supporters held mass rallies in Yerevan's Freedom Square and other cities. On 10 March, Hovannisian started a hunger strike, calling elected President Sargsyan to resign before 9 April, the inauguration day. Hovannisian called "for the solution of this unprecedented pan-national fundamental issue before April 9." During an interview on 18 March 2013, Sargsyan said he would not visit Hovannisian and described his claims as "arrogant phrases seasoned with obscenities". Sargsyan was inaugurated on 9 April 2013, while Hovannisian and thousands of people gathered in the streets of Yerevan to protest it, clashing with the police forces blocking the way to the Presidential Palace. Hovannisian's movement was dubbed "Barevolution", a portmanteau of barev and revolution, referring to Raffi Hovannisian's habit of walking up to people and greeting them during the election campaign.
The following lists events that happened during 2013 in Armenia.
The following lists events that happened during 2010 in Armenia.
The following lists events that happened during 2012 in Armenia.
The following lists events that occurred in 2018 in Armenia.
The 2018 Armenian revolution was a series of anti-government protests in Armenia from April to May 2018 staged by various political and civil groups led by member of parliament Nikol Pashinyan. Protests and marches took place initially in response to Serzh Sargsyan's third consecutive term as the most powerful figure in the government of the Armenia and later against the Republican Party-controlled government in general. Pashinyan declared it a Velvet Revolution.
