The U.S. on Monday said it condemns threats against government officials, following remarks by the head of a U.S.-based Armenian group suggesting action against Armenia's premier.
"We always condemn threats against government officials, or any attempts to overthrow lawfully elected governments," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in response to an Anadolu reporter's question.
In a Facebook post on Sunday, Aram Suren Hamparian, executive director of the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), voiced criticism of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan over the situation in Karabakh.
Hamparian also suggested security forces take action against the prime minister once, as he put it, "an Armenian guarding Pashinyan values his souls more than his paycheck."
"Years from now, children yet unborn will ask their grandfathers: 'Babig, what did you do when Artsakh was attacked? Did you defend our homeland, did you protect our people?'" Hamparian also wrote, using the name for an unrecognized breakaway area of the Karabakh region, which is internationally recognized as Azerbaijani territory.
"Far too many-many of them cops reaping robust cash bonuses today-will stare down at their shoes in shame and either mumble a lie or admit: 'I defended Nikol Pashinyan against his own people'," said Hamparian.
Hamparian's posts sparked a debate among social media users, with one expressing support for Pashinyan by stating: "You're inciting against Pashinyan, who's doing his best to find a peaceful solution for Artsakh (Karabakh)."
Last week, in the wake of provocations by Armenian forces in Karabakh, Azerbaijan said it had launched "counter-terrorism" activities in the region to uphold a 2020 trilateral peace agreement with Russia and Armenia. After 24 hours, a cease-fire was reached in the region.
In the fall of 2020, Azerbaijan liberated several cities, villages, and settlements in Karabakh from nearly 30 years of Armenian occupation. The war ended that November with a Russia-brokered cease-fire.
Tensions between the two nations, however, continue despite ongoing talks aiming for a long-term peace deal.
Pashinyan and Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev are set to meet on Oct. 5 in the Spanish city of Granada to discuss the signing of a peace treaty between the two countries.
