YEREVAN. – Following the assassination attempt that was staged against presidential candidate, opposition National Self-Determination Union Chairman Paruyr Hayrikyan—who is recovering at hospital from a gunshot wound—, the election campaign will not go calmly and peacefully, as it was in the beginning, but the election results will not change. Caucasus Institute Director, political scientist Alexander Iskandaryan stated this during a Yerevan-Moscow live television discussion on Tuesday.       

Overall, however, Iskandaryan is skeptical toward Hayrikyan’s assumption that the Russian “KGB” could be involved in his shooing. In his words, the assassination attempt against the presidential contender was unprofessional. 

As for who stands to gain from this attack, the analyst recalled that Hayrikyan could not be considered among the top-three presidential candidates, and therefore the “task” was not to eliminate an opponent. As per Iskandaryan, this is more about shooting a symbol because, to some extent, Paruyr Hayrikyan is a symbol of Armenia’s independence.  

As per the political scientist, this incident will not alter the results of the forthcoming presidential voting, albeit the percentage of the votes could change.

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