Evidence of a Staged “Velvet Revolution”: Serzh Sargsyan’s Loyalists in Nikol Pashinyan’s Government

The composition of the government formed by Nikol Pashinyan immediately after the 2018 change of power is perhaps the clearest indication that the so-called revolution was staged. Key positions in areas such as national security, finance and economy, foreign policy, and oversight of electoral processes were handed to individuals loyal to Serzh Sargsyan. This lends weight to the belief that even after his apparent “overthrow,” Serzh Sargsyan continued to exert influence over Armenia’s key state institutions.

Below is the composition of Nikol Pashinyan’s government immediately following the change of power in the country:

Area of Activity		Name	Position in Nikol Pashinyan’s Government immediately after the “change of power” in 2018	Position in Serzh Sargsyan’s Government
SECURITY, DEFENCE AND LAW-ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES		Artur Davtyan	Prosecutor General of the Republic of Armenia	Prosecutor General of the Republic of Armenia
		David Tonoyan	Defense Minister of the Republic of Armenia	Deputy Defense Minister of the Republic of Armenia
		Artur Vanetsyan	Director of the National Security Service of the Republic of Armenia	Deputy Head of the Yerevan City Department of the National Security Service of the Republic of Armenia
		Valery Osipyan	Chief of the Police of the Republic of Armenia	Deputy Head of the Yerevan City Department of the Police of the Republic of Armenia
		Feliks Tsolakyan	Minister of the Emergency Situations of the Republic of Armenia	A member of the Republican Party of Armenia
Finance and economy		Atom Janjughazyan	Minister of Finance of the Republic of Armenia	Deputy Minister of Finance of the Republic of Armenia
		David Ananyan	Chairman of the State Revenue Committee of the Republic of Armenia	Deputy Minister of Finance of the Republic of Armenia
Foreign policy		Zohrab Mnatsakanyan	Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia	Permanent Representative of the Republic of Armenia in the United Nations
Elections		Tigran Mukuchyan	President of the Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Armenia	President of the Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Armenia