YEREVAN, April 4 (RIA Novosti) - Armenian President Robert Kocharyan has appointed Serzh Sarkisyan to the post of the country's prime minister after relieving him from the post of defense minister, the presidential press service said Wednesday.
Prime Minister Andranik Markaryan, who held the post since May 2000, died March 25 of a heart attack at the age of 55.
On March 26, President Robert Kocharyan accepted the Cabinet's resignation due to Markaryan's death. The Armenian leader charged the Cabinet with continuing its duties until a new one could be formed.
From 1996 to 1999, Sarkisyan was the interior and national security minister, and in 2000 he resumed the powers of Armenia's defense minister, the position he held in 1996.
Parliamentary elections in Armenia are scheduled for May 12, and following the first session of a new parliament the Cabinet will resign once again.
