Dear compatriots, I urge you not to participate in the rally planned by the Prime Minister in Echmiadzin under any circumstances, in order to avoid its unpredictable consequences.

The first President of the Republic of Armenia, Levon Ter-Petrosyan, made a statement:

“The Pasha of Armenia, Nikolai, has recently once again boasted that he will not abandon the threat of holding a large rally in Echmiadzin. Last time, after my letter to him, he tacitly abandoned the idea of holding a large rally in the central square of Echmiadzin on the holiday of Vardavar. Let me remind you of the content of that letter: “Dear Mr. Prime Minister, before it is too late, cancel the decision to hold the rally you initiated in Vagharshapat and immediately release the political prisoners, first of all, the Archbishops Bagrat and Michael and Samvel Karapetyan. I am confident that this step will be viewed not as a sign of weakness, but as a manifestation of common sense worthy of a statesman. Otherwise, Mr. Prime Minister, you will become the sole responsible for possible clashes and bloodshed, earning the immortal fame of Father Gapon. "In conclusion, dear compatriots, I urge you not to participate in the rally planned by the Prime Minister under any circumstances in order to avoid its unpredictable consequences. Do not forget that the authorities were created not to oppress you and expose you to danger, but to ensure the well-being and security of your families" ( iLur.am , 23.07.2025).

Judging by the press reactions, this prevented the inevitable clash and bloodshed, which would not have been forgiven to the arrogant Metsargo under any circumstances. However, Nikol would not have been Nikol if he had swallowed that humiliation and had not tried, as is typical of his character, to threaten the Mother See again, not realizing at all that with that step he was throwing down the gauntlet to the entire Armenian people, as well as not at all considering that he was only the Prime Minister of Armenia and not of all Armenians. Now let's see what exactly he said at the session of the National Assembly held on September 10, 2018. "I have stated that I imagine the culmination to be a grand event of spiritual content in the central square of Etchmiadzin. We are now discussing the timing, organizational and substantive issues. There is an important circumstance here that it must have spiritual content. Lately, I have been spending the most time on this, presenting that the goal of this process is not intrigue, not solving personnel issues, but the goal is exclusively spiritual, the spiritual renewal of the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church. That culmination will not be political, revolutionary, it will be an event based exclusively on spiritual, Christian values. There will be no political appeals, speeches, there will be speeches of spiritual content. … There will be no compromise, it is excluded, Ktrich Nersisyan must go. The sooner he goes, the better, it will not help, it will not save anything” ( aravot.am , 10.09.2025).

In conclusion, I consider it necessary to repeat the following appeal from my quoted letter: "Dear compatriots, I urge you not to participate in the rally planned by the Prime Minister under any circumstances in order to avoid its unpredictable consequences. Do not forget that the authorities were created not to oppress you and expose you to danger, but to ensure the well-being and security of your families."