YEREVAN. – If there are grounds for my resignation, I will not stay in this position even a minute more, and I myself will write a letter of resignation. Armenia’s Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports Arayik Harutyunyan stated this during a press conference Wednesday, referring to the fact that the parliamentary opposition Bright Armenia Party today will officially raise the matter of his resignation, as well as to the marches being held in Yerevan demanding his resignation.

"These complaints are related to the major reforms’ package that is being implemented. The concern of some political circles is connected with the fact that as a result of these reforms, we will have a generation that will no longer be their basis, will be critical, analytical. And if the critical, analytical generation analyzes the activities of these circles, it will immediately decide that it will never support these circles on any occasion. Groups fighting under various veils, false values will be deprived of any support in society," the minister said.

As for his meeting with these protesting groups, Harutyunyan said: "You have seen that I meet with these groups in all the cases when there is an agenda. [But] when groups put extreme points—such as resignation, for example—on their agenda, I find it pointless to discuss it because it is a matter on their agenda, and not a matter on my agenda at all. The matter on my agenda is to reform the [education] sector and bring novelty to the sector.”

"[But] if I feel that we are going in the wrong direction—but we are going in the right direction now, I will resign myself. [But] there is no such matter on my agenda now," Arayik Harutyunyan added.