The Standing Committee on Defense and Security of the Armenian parliament on Wednesday refused to appoint lawmaker Artur Ghazinyan from the opposition Armenia faction as its deputy chairman for the fourth time. The ruling faction MPs of the committee again voted against his candidacy.

Andranik Kocharyan, the chairman of the committee, said that within five days the committee will again hold a special meeting, not forgetting about other issues on the agenda.

It’s worth noting that the voting was held without the participation of the opposition lawmakers, since they had earlier left the hall, considering the discussion “pointless”.

“The authorities cannot force the opposition to change its decision. It is not appropriate, to say the least. Questions have been asked, answers have been given, speeches have been made and the candidate has been introduced three times. I have nothing new to say,” Ghazinyan said before leaving the room.

“Accordingly, all the responsibility lies with you, make your decision and announce it. Thank you, I'm leaving,” he noted.

The other opposition MPs also followed suit.