Expert: Maidan has already taken place in Armenia - on March 1, 2008

ArmInfo. There will be no Maidan  in Armenia, since it already took place on March 1, 2008, and was  accomplished through the efforts of the then President Robert  Kocharyan and his closest circle. Economist Vahagn Khachatryan  expressed a similar opinion to ArmInfo.

" Everyone knows this. Our people know perfectly well who it is and  what he is made of. And today this same Kocharyan declares that in  Ukraine through the Maidans the power has changed three times. And he  even tries to draw some parallels with Armenia. Meanwhile, Nikol  Pashinyan carried out  an exclusively non-violent change of power, a  "velvet" revolution in the country, "he stressed.

In this light, Khachatryan expressed his conviction that it is  impossible to carry out a violent change of power in Armenia. Which,  according to his estimates, is what some forces in Armenia want so  badly. He stressed that everyone should understand this  impossibility, first of all people with such intentions.

On July 29, in an interview with "Yerkir Media", "5th Channel" and  "Second Armenian TV Channel" TV companies, former President of  Armenia Robert Kocharyan criticized practically all directions of the  policy of the current authorities. Assessing the social and economic  situation in the country as unsatisfactory in the Artsakh issue, in  relation to Russia, the former President noted that "in the current  reality, the political situation in Armenia can change dramatically."

Commenting on Kocharyan's criticism of the government's steps towards  overcoming the economic crisis, the economist emphasized the  inconsistency of the former president's arguments, due to his  complete separation from the realities and positive changes in the  country. The latter, according to Khachatryan, is, among other  things, due to the fundamentally conflicting goals of Kocharyan and  his followers with the goals of the new government.

"Kocharyan and his successors ruled the state with the aim of  plundering it and filling their own pockets.  And even in a  nightmare, they could not imagine that the day would come when people  who did not take bribes would rule Armenia. Yes, Pashinyan's  government pays bonuses, in this way legally and adequately rewarding  people for their work. And I understand that it is rather difficult  for people who are used to handing out money in envelopes and  allowing officials to take bribes, "the economist concluded.