YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has denied what he described as “absurd” accusations claiming that he wasn’t giving consent for Russian peacekeepers to be deployed to Karabakh until the fall of Shushi.

Opposition leader Gagik Tsarukyan (Prosperous Armenia Party) claimed in an interview that Russia was ready to deploy its peacekeepers to Karabakh as early as October 28, when the town of Shushi wasn’t yet captured by Azeri forces, but Pashinyan did not agree at that time. Tsarukyan vehemently lambasted the armistice conditions and claimed that Shushi fell because of a “conspiracy”.

“This is total absurd”, Pashinyan said in a Facebook video address on November 11.

He cited his interviews of October 22 and October 25 where he publicly said that he favors Russian peacekeepers in Karabakh. “By publicly speaking in favor of this, how could I be against it on October 28?”

Pashinyan then criticized the opposition leader for what he described as not fulfilling his pledge to lead a volunteer detachment to the frontlines.  Tsarukyan had formed a detachment of volunteer soldiers and said he would lead them to active duty. “But seemingly we didn’t see any detachment of volunteers led by Gagik Tsarukyan fighting near Shushi,” Pashinyan said. “How come they make a public statement but no practical step?”

“Perhaps these detachments were formed not for conducting operations in Shushi but in Armenia? This must be investigated and assessed under criminal law.”

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan