A view of Yerevan, Armenia Photo: VCG

Armenian President Armen Sarkisian on Sunday announced that he was resigning his largely ceremonial position, citing the inability of his office to influence policy during times of national crisis.

The announcement comes on the back of a period instability in the small and economically struggling ex-Soviet Caucasus nation in the wake of a war with its long-standing rival Azerbaijan.

Armenia's humiliating defeat and loss of disputed territory in late 2020 ultimately sparked massive street rallies and a domestic crisis that pitted Sarkisian against Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

"This is not an emotionally-driven decision and it comes from a specific logic," Sarkisian said in a statement on his official website.

"The president does not have the necessary tools to influence the important processes of foreign and domestic policy in difficult times for the people and the country," he said.

At the core of that disagreement was the dismissal of the Armenian military's chief of staff, and Sarkisian had refused to sign an order from Pashinyan to see him moved, in what was a serious blow to the embattled prime minister.

The outgoing president said at the time that the crisis could not be defused through frequent personnel changes.

Armenia's economy has struggled since the Soviet collapse and money sent home by Armenians abroad has aided the construction of schools, churches and other infrastructure projects, including in Nagorno-Karabakh.