Levon Ter-Petrosyan
| Levon Ter-Petrosyan | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| 1st President of Armenia | |
|
In office 11 November 1991 – 3 February 1998 |
|
| Preceded by | position established |
| Succeeded by | Robert Kocharyan |
| Chairperson of the Supreme Council of Armenia | |
|
In office 4 August 1990 – 11 November 1991 |
|
| Preceded by | position established |
| Succeeded by | position abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
9 January 1946 Aleppo, Syria |
| Nationality | Armenian |
| Political party |
Pan-Armenian National Movement (1989–2008) Armenian National Congress (2008–) |
| Other political affiliations |
Pan-Armenian National Movement (2008–2013) |
| Spouse(s) | Lyudmila Ter-Petrosyan (née Pleskovskaya) |
| Children | David Ter-Petrosyan |
| Alma mater |
Yerevan State University Leningrad State University |
| Religion | Armenian Apostolic |
| Signature |  |
| Website | www |
Levon Hagopi Ter-Petrosyan (Armenian: Լևոն Հակոբի Տեր-Պետրոսյան; born 9 January 1946), also known by his initials LTP, is an Armenian politician. He was the first President of Armenia from 1991 to 1998. A senior researcher at the Matenadaran Institute of Ancient Manuscripts, he led the Karabakh movement for the unification of the Armenian-populated Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia in 1988. After Armenia's independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Ter-Petrosyan was elected president in October 1991 with overwhelming public support. He led the country through the Nagorno-Karabakh War with neighboring Azerbaijan, during which Armenia supported the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic in fighting against Azerbaijan.
He has been accused of rigging the 1996 election, causing thousands to go into the streets to protest the results. The protesters were led by official runner-up Vazgen Manukyan, Ter-Petrosyan's former colleague and his first Prime Minister and later the Defence Minister. The mass rallies were suppressed by military force. Due to disagreements with the key government members, especially Defence Minister Vazgen Sargsyan and Prime Minister Robert Kocharyan, Ter-Petrosyan resigned on 3 February 1998.
From his resignation up to 2007, Ter-Petrosyan was inactive in the political scene, however, he made a political comeback in September 2007 and ran for presidency in 2008. He faced one of his former government members, at the time Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan. According to official results, he earned only 21.5% of the total vote. Ter-Petrosyan claimed the elections were rigged and led thousands of his supporters into mass protests against the alleged electoral fraud and called for new elections. After a week of mass protests, the government used police and apparently military force to disperse his supporters, resulting in the death of ten people on 1 March 2008.
...
Wikipedia