April 22, 2026
Another case of vandalism took place in Artsakh occupied by Azerbaijan. This time, as a result of Azerbaijani vandalism, the Cathedral of St. Mary of Stepanakert was destroyed. Until now, Azerbaijan has thoroughly destroyed various churches both in Stepanakert and in the regions.
Artsakh cultural heritage ombudsman Hovik Avanesov recently presented statistics on the cases of vandalism in Artsakh, informing that about 1000 cases of similar vandalism have already been registered by Azerbaijan.
To what extent do the international structures that deal with the preservation of cultural heritage keep these cases in the center of their attention, how is the problem presented in different structures from the Armenian side?
Raffi Kortoshyan, deputy director of the Foundation for the Study of Armenian Architecture according to them, they have not heard any statement from any international organization regarding the vandalized monuments in Artsakh recently.
“Actually, these problems are not even raised. Satellite photos are still not available, there are only old satellite photos that show that the church is still there, but it has been almost proven by various Facebook users that the Stepanakert church has been destroyed. We are waiting for new satellite photos, after which we will definitely talk about everything.
Reactions to all cases of vandalism are limited only on the Internet by different users or professionals, there is no reaction from any international organization.” 168.amRaffi Kortoshyan said in a conversation with
According to our interlocutor, various experts and individuals promptly spread all the data regarding vandalism, present facts, but the response is delayed.
“The International Court of Justice in 2022 has a decision adopted on September 7 that Azerbaijan is obliged to protect Armenian monuments from destruction, they will not be vandalized. However, we are witnessing that Azerbaijan does not fulfill this decision and destroys the monuments every day.
In reality, the laws and commitments, decisions of international courts should become a deterrent mechanism for Azerbaijan, if Azerbaijan does not do all that, then other steps should be taken.
I think the international community, civilization is in a deep sleep. “The international community, which is divided, does not talk about the forced displacement of people, ethnic cleansing and genocides. It is hard for me to imagine that it should talk about, for example, the destroyed churches,” added Raffi Kortoshyan.
According to him, by eliminating the Armenian monuments and the Armenian traces in Artsakh, Azerbaijan has one goal and has always fulfilled its goals, both in Nakhichevan, in Northern Artsakh and in Artsakh itself, and in all those areas, Azerbaijan has destroyed and is destroying all Armenian monuments.
“Azerbaijan even destroyed cemeteries, today is no exception, it is doing the same thing. After subjecting Armenians to ethnic cleansing and displacement, he continues to destroy Armenian monuments. After ethnic cleansing, this is a new ethnic cleansing, already in terms of monuments,” Raffi Kortoshyan emphasized.
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I really want that in the elections of 2021 the scenario will not be repeated. Serzh Sargsyan
April 22, 2026
“It is impossible to describe it in one term. It’s stupidity, it’s nationalism, there’s nothing to say,” said Serzh Sargsyan, the 3rd President of RA, in response. 168.amto the question: is it pragmatism or denial when the government says that if there is no issue of the Armenian Genocide, we will live well?
The president also mentioned that the government will not take any steps regarding the destruction of the Mother Church of the Holy Mother of God in Stepanakert by the Azerbaijanis.
As for the pre-election period and the elections, Serzh Sargsyan said that he really wants the 2021 elections. the scenario will not repeat itself.
Details in the video.
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If Pashinyan could not be the supreme commander during martial law,
April 22, 2026
In recent days, 2020 was put on the agenda for discussion. During the days of the 44-day war, the share of responsibility of the Defense Army of Artsakh and the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia regarding the breach of the defense line in important areas, Azerbaijani penetrations in tactical depth and the loss of Shushi.
In particular, the basis for this was the adoption of the 2025 plan of the RA government in the National Assembly on April 17. During the performance discussion, the application statement of the former Minister of Defense of the Republic of Armenia, the head of the Hayastan faction Seyran Ohanyan, that during the 44-day war, the Artsakh Defense Army had a defense zone of 283 km, of which they kept 265 km for one month, until October 27, 2020.
“With your zone of responsibility, Azerbaijan has bypassed and reached the borders of Shushi, Berdzor, Berdadzor and the Republic of Armenia – the borders of Goris, Kapan, Meghri. Now you say that the generals escaped, they escaped under your leadership, go and make a decision,” said Ohanyan, addressing Nikol Pashinyan.
Later 24TV–in a conversation with , he noted that the first line of responsibility for the penetration into the Artsakh defense zone is the Artsakh Defense Army, but if the enemy concentrates its main efforts in the direction of the breakthrough zone and penetrates into the defense zone at tactical depth, then the RA armed forces join the problem with the appropriate military unit and other forces. In other words, according to Seyran Ohanyan, in this case the decisions are taken by the RA authorities, and Pashinyan is the main person responsible.
«On the right side of the Artsakh defense zone, there is a large area, about 100 km along the Araxi river, to the borders of the Republic of Armenia. It is in that direction that Azerbaijan was able to develop its attack and reach the borders of the Republic of Armenia. And it was very difficult for PB to turn its right wing in that area, so to speak, so that it could fully implement its defense. If the enemy had been stopped there in time with tactical depth, then the capture of Hadrut and Shushi would not have happened.” he continued.
It should be noted that this idea is the most comprehensive in S. Ohanyan said still in 2023 168.amwith in the interview.
“The Defense Forces had a 283 km defensive zone, the enemy attacked in 2 places in the southern direction: Hadrut, Jabrail, and in the northern direction: Martakert. In the southern direction, the enemy managed to break through the defensive line. With that breakthrough, the enemy was able to reach 52 km to Shushi, and 70-100 km to reach parts of Meghri, Kapan, Goris, Sev Lake. …The opponent was able to break through and move forward in the place in which it was the duty of the RA leader to confirm the decision. We must see the Shushi operation in the context of the entire defensive operation and the consistent or gradual advance of the enemy throughout that breakthrough zone. Shushi’s operation should not be seen separately, they should have faced at least the forest areas of Hadrut in the collision zone, where there were quite good conditions to stop the enemy,” explained the former Minister of Defense.
It is another matter that S. In recent days, Ohanyan has avoided answering our questions about military or war operations, including the defense of Shushi.
Hadrut, going to Shush was not in the area of responsibility of the First Army Corps of the RA Armed Forces
We tried to listen Former First Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the RA Armed Forces, Lieutenant General Tiran Khachatryan professional opinion, who was in charge of the southern route, and in the context of the conversation these days, misconceptions could arise.
“Hadrut, Shushi, who has a little understanding, should understand that this has nothing to do with my area of responsibility, it has nothing to do with it at all, it is outside that area. The direction they went from Hadrut to Shushi has nothing to do with the southern group at all. Are you saying that Seyran Ohanyan gives the name of the Araks bank, that “along the Araks river about 100 km to the borders of Armenia, Azerbaijan was able to develop its attack and reach the borders of Armenia in that direction”, S. Ohanyan says something else, he says that the responsibility for organizing defense in strategic depth lies with N. It is on Pashinyan.
And the Araks coast, which he says, was the defense zone of the 9th defense region of Artsakh, which operated as part of the Artsakh Armed Forces until the end. As for the 1st Army Corps of the RA Armed Forces, what task did it receive, as far as the forces were satisfied, it fulfilled them. And the breakthrough, then the promotion, has nothing to do with the 1st MC of the RA Armed Forces. Hadrut, going to Shush was neither under the responsibility of the First Army Corps nor anyone else. It was the area of responsibility of the Artsakh Defense Forces, there are problems related to the Defense Forces command. Something else that has not been done to counter their forces, to protect them… or to challenge them properly organizationally.
If we go into more detail. there was a defense base, a position, a stronghold, a district, then a zone of responsibility of the Defense Ministry, and after all that, there is Shushi deeper,” explained the general, repeating that S. Ohanyan said that the main responsible is the head of the country, the supreme commander, he must understand what decision he is under, so to speak, “signing”.
On the contrary, N. Pashinyan has stated on various occasions that he is not a specialist in military affairs and is not obliged to understand narrow issues, on the other hand, 168.amthe wrote that during the 44-day war, martial law was declared in RA, during which the prime minister cannot be the supreme commander, that is, the head of the General Staff is subordinate to the Minister of Defense, Tiran Khachatryan responded.
“If he is not a specialist, why is he in charge? As for the second part of the question, then ask why they were reporting everything to him and he was making the decision himself.”
Armenia may have demanded something, but Azerbaijan said far play
Taking into account that at some point the second stage of demarcation and demarcation will take place in the Tavush region, and according to politicians and experts, the handing over of the enclave villages will destroy not only the internal communications of the Tavush region, but will also put the highway through Tavush to Bagratashen, the Armenian-Georgian border, and the gas pipeline entering the RA from Georgia under attack, we, the first deputy chief of the RA Armed Forces in the conversation with, we could not ignore the developments in the Tavush area.
After all, the fact that in 2020 The clause about Tavush was removed from the tripartite statement of November 9-10 contributed also Tiran Khachatryan.
In this context, we have not bypassed 2019 in the Tavush sector. Thanks to the 3rd Army Corps of the RA Armed Forces, the positional improvements we recorded when the authorities were recording որ՝ “Under the full control of the Armenian forces are strategically important for our country: the gas pipeline from Georgia to Armenia and the Armenia-Georgia highway, as well as the roads leading to several rural settlements of Azerbaijan.”
After this in 2020 In July, military operations took place, during which Armenia also secured positional improvements. 2024 168.amin a conversation with former RA Defense Minister Davit Tonoyan said. “Tavush 2020 the July battles and the preceding 2019 The February operations were carried out based on the strategic logic of strengthening RA’s positions.”
But years after the July battles, N. Pashinyan destroyed the successes of the July battles through the pilot demarcation and demarcation process.
Tiran Khachatryan confirms: “at that time, we performed tasks of positional improvement”.
“As for the demarcation and demarcation process, today we have not solved any issue in our favor, we have fulfilled the demands put forward by the enemy. We haven’t solved any issues for ourselves. Can you mention somewhere that something has been done for historical justice, restoration of reality, or, why not, to fix the situation in our favor in the order fixed for the present? Nothing like this has happened. And to think that some issue will be resolved for us in the future will not be such a thing. There is no such thing.
What Azerbaijan said and wanted, it got. Even if something was presented by us, so to speak, they gave it to the mouth and threw it in the trash, if it was. In any case, any questions for us (and they are not few, still in terms of the restoration of the borders of the Soviet period) have not been asked. There are useful things in the existing maps that were Armenian and are not ours now. I don’t know if they may have requested them, but they said play away. The situation shows that,” said the general.
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The US State Department called on Americans to leave Iran immediately
April 22, 2026
The US State Department called on Americans to leave Iran immediately.
It is noted that the Americans who want to leave Iran can also travel by land to Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey and Turkmenistan.
US citizens are not advised to visit Afghanistan, Iraq, and the border regions of Pakistan and Iran. The US State Department declares that it should be taken into account that the Iranian government can prevent US citizens from leaving the country or set an “exit fee” for leaving Iran. Persons with dual US and Iranian citizenship must leave Iran with Iranian passports.
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Onik Gasparyan Was Obliged to Give the Order to Arrest Nikol Pashinyan. A promise
April 22, 2026
Former Minister of Defense of the Republic of Armenia, Colonel-General Seyran Ohanyan last week speechn: In the National Assembly in 2020 About the actions of the Artsakh Defense Army during the 44-day war, the decision-making mechanisms of the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, and the responsibility of Nikol Pashinyan, and after that, shared by the former head of the Defense Forces, Colonel-General Onik Gasparyan the statement have stimulated a new public debate on the subject of the 44-day war and post-war events.
On topic 168 TVof Revue is the guest of the program Former Chairman of the Defense Industry Committee (2018-2020) Avetik Kerobyan։
The expert emphasizes that in 2020 military clashes on the Tavush border in the summer of 2020. There are many lies circulating about the autumn Forty-four-day war and all the military operations that took place since 2020, and the sad thing is that the Armenian people only know fragmentary truths or half-truths about them.
Regarding the public appeal of the former chief of the general staff to “explode all the lies that are circulating”, Avetik Kerobyan recalls the famous words of the first chancellor of Imperial Germany, Otto von Bismarck: “People never lie more than before elections, during war and after hunting»։
Avetik Kerobyan is convinced that this statement of the former chief of the general staff Onik Gasparyan, with the proposal to organize a closed discussion in the National Assembly on the topic of the 44-day war and post-war events and the call to “explode all the lies that are circulating”, is simply “STAGED”in order to purify Nikol Pashinyan’s political past and guarantee his political future. According to Kerobyan, Onik Gasparyan did not realize the responsibility of his position.
“Here we are dealing not only with Onik Gasparyan’s statements, which should be legally assessed, but also with Nikol Pashinyan’s statements, which are self-confessed statements about official crimes.
Of course, more than 5 years have passed since then, but we must not forget that Nikol Pashinyan gave many self-confessed statements about crimes against the Republic of Armenia and has not been punished to this day,” Avetik Kerobyan noted.
Speaking about the 44-day war and various episodes, the former chairman of the Military Industry Committee specifically mentions the short cease-fire established on October 10, which he personally witnessed, being in front-line positions, and notes that the Armenian side violated it first, and until now there has been no answer as to why the Armenian side violated that cease-fire, why the rocket attack on Gandzak airport was announced.
“I met General Onik Gasparyan for the first time after the war around December 10, when one of our army corps, which was protecting the northern part of the contact line, retreated from Vardenis to Jermuk and even further south and occupied new terrain and was not at all protected even from snow and rain, and you know what winter weather means in the northern positions of Jermuk.
The army was generally in a defenseless state, in unequipped positions, but General Onik Gasparyan was busy shifting the responsibility from himself to the so-called border guard troops. Approximately two and a half months after that, the famous announcement was made, calling for the resignation of the Government.
That evening and the following evening, I also met with Onik Gasparyan, who did not even realize the responsibility that came with the position he held, and I think he did not even realize the responsibility that came with that position during the war, because if the Republic of Armenia did not declare war, Onik Gasparyan remained the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces and was obliged to independently make decisions and manage the troops independently.
Along with that, we know of many documented cases that persons without any official authority participated in the management of the troops, for example, the wife of the Prime Minister at that time… And we also know that Onik Gasparyan allowed Nikol Pashinyan to make decisions and reveal the planned actions of the Armed Forces during the ongoing military operations in an interview given to the foreign media, we remember the famous interview of “RBK”, and did not take measures to ensure at least the information security of the troops under his command. in part.
At that time, Onik Gasparyan was obliged to issue an order to arrest Nikol Pashinyan, because the man was in an unbalanced state and was carrying out actions contrary to the interests of the RA Armed Forces. He didn’t do it. Of course, that time has passed, but standing up today and saying, “You know what’s going on, I’m ready to face it, but behind closed doors”, I’m sorry, is a very poorly hidden attempt to clean up Nikol Pashinyan’s political past and guarantee his political future,” commented Avetik Kerobyan.
Our interlocutor also reminds that the current government as in 2016 Four-day war, as well as 2020 He formed two investigative commissions on the issues of the 44-day war, both headed by Andranik Kocharyan, chairman of the Standing Committee on Defense and Security Affairs of the National Assembly, whose reports remained confidential.
“During the past 5 years, they had a lot of time to hide many facts and traces, to hide the facts, to lose the traces. I am sure that corrections were made in the operational planning maps in order to hide the ignorance, the ignorance, to hide the reasons for the failures.
I am sure that the postponement of the publication of the report of this investigative commission and the consequent non-discussion at the plenary session aim at one thing: to hide one’s own crimes, to hide one’s own inaction and the large territorial and human losses that occurred as a result of that inaction. Kocharyan Andranik must give answers. Alen Simonyan, who is currently the Speaker of the National Assembly and is obliged to answer to the Armenian people about all this, must give answers, because the National Assembly is not a group with narrow interests. The National Assembly is responsible to the people, it is the only structure endowed with a primary mandate in our country,” Kerobyan added.
Let’s remind that on April 17, the leader of the National Assembly “Hayastan” faction, former Minister of Defense of the Republic of Armenia Seyran Ohanyan, addressing Nikol Pashinyan, from the podium of the National Assembly had announcedthat if the generals escaped, it is Nikol Pashinyan’s responsibility.
“The Defense Army, Mr. Pashinyan, had a defense zone of 283 km, of which they kept 265 km for a month until October 27. The generals you mentioned escaped through that area, and I think that it is your responsibility, because if the General Staff makes the decision, the General Staff or Artsakh President approves, and if there are several military units, the General Staff and several Armenian military units, then the Chief of the General Staff makes the decision there, and you approve. In your area of responsibility, Azerbaijan has bypassed and reached the borders of Shushi, Berdzor, Berdadzor and the borders of the Republic of Armenia: Goris, Kapan, Meghri,” Ohanyan said in particular.
To this announcement on April 19 had responded Onik Gasparyan, the former head of the General Assembly, proposing to organize a closed discussion in the National Assembly in 2020. on the subject of the war and post-war events and declaring that “it is time to face reality and explode all the lies and unnecessary speculations that are being circulated”.
Nikol Pashinyan, in response to a journalist’s question during a briefing on April 2, confirmed his statement that he called some generals “cowards” and “robbers”.
“I did not say that the generals are cowards, I said that there are cowardly generals and deserters, and yes, many of them are on trial. We have looting generals who go through illegal property cases, and we have generals who go through corruption cases, and the shoulder of the general is no one… In general, I think we have to use the word “hero” very carefully, because we have used the word so much that, in fact, we have blurred the real heroes into verbal heroes. Or what is the news that they once again turned it into a subject of dispute? The fact that we have tens of thousands of people who refused to perform the combat task, who are we hiding from? I want to understand…
You know what, people should not associate their escape, their robbery with my orders. I did not give such orders. People wanted to receive such orders, I never gave such orders. Whoever says such a thing is from the army of robbers. I apologize to all those people who fulfilled their civil and military duty to the end. In conversation, it turns out that wet and dry are mixed. I never mix wet and dry and call people and things by their names.
Yes, we have had cowardly generals. What will happen to a person who became a general as a result of corruption? Or, in general, does he look like a soldier? “Who is the general who threw his stomach 3 meters to his face?” Nikol Pashinyan specifically said.
Full interview in the video.
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They are lying, they cheated the pensioner. Look at the inflation, you will see that the pension has decreased
April 22, 2026
168TV’s “Zara Has a Question” the guest of the program Economist Nairi Sargsyan is the head of the “Armenia is me” initiative. The initiative has announced that it will join forces with “Strong Armenia” led by Samvel Karapetyan in the upcoming elections.
A few points of Nairi Sargsyan’s conversation in one shot․
- What does Nikol Pashinyan say?՛and we should focus on its diametric opposite. Pashinyan is too small a figure to talk about the opening of borders․ he is not a decision-maker, he is only a follower and carries out assignments. And the opening of the borders by Turkey does not create any positive opportunities for Armenia yet.
- Nikol Pashinyan, I invite you, the ministers of your economic bloc, your deputies to the debate, come to the debate. They are lying․ let them say just one product or service is exportable. Moreover, Turkey will become an actor in the matter of raising the limits of import duties from 3rd countries in Armenia. It’s just that we have been lucky in a certain sense, in the sense that we are part of the Eurasian Economic Union, and we do not decide the customs duties alone. The EAEU is determined by laws, regulations and agreements. Therefore, Turkey is still not able to interfere much in the internal life of Armenia.
- If the borders were suddenly opened, Turkish goods flooded the Armenian market, Turkish investments flowed into Armenia… a good future does not await us, but we must also repeat for the sake of justice that, yes, one day we must open the border of Turkey, we must open it after doing our homework, we must be ready for shocks, be ready to face it, after that, please, let us open it.
- Cargo can enter from Kazakhstan through the territory of Azerbaijan, exit to the territory of Georgia, and then to Armenia. This is not a manifestation of goodwill on the part of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan makes money, Georgia makes money, Kazakhstan makes money, Armenian businessman makes money. Nikol Pashinyan is simply boasting, these are lies.
- In terms of fuel, Azerbaijan has no potential. even the demand for domestic consumption is not enough to export a single item to Armenia…
- Which fuel do we bring to Armenia, Russian, why can’t we bring it directly from Russia, besides, Armenia has quota agreements with Russia in terms of fuel, the price of the release is sold to Armenia at domestic consumption prices. In other words, these are such magics that are revealed immediately, Azerbaijan cannot supply fuel to Armenia, it is not its own.
- Energy cooperation means closing the nuclear power plant, Armenia’s energy dependence on Turkey. Turkey has been complaining about the existence of the Nuclear Power Plant in Armenia for years, considers it a danger and a threat to itself and is simultaneously building a new nuclear power plant with the Russians, the “Akkuyu” nuclear power plant. You see Nikol Pashinyan’s hysterical statements that we need to replace or re-equip the nuclear power plant, etc… they are just packaging to make our society believe. In reality, 32% of Armenia’s energy demand is produced by the nuclear power plant. The cheapest electricity is produced by the nuclear power plant, but they want to close the nuclear power plant and import the deficit from Turkey.
- Inflation of essential goods was approximately 40%. the pension has decreased and not increased in Armenia.
- Health insurance is just a disgrace. Our compatriots are excited, it’s normal, it’s objective, because they’ve had illnesses for years, many of them couldn’t go to medical institutions. But do you know how it is happening now? So, when we talk, we say that the allocated budget will be enough until the elections, after that we will face big problems, it was not enough. Additional money was allocated from the government’s reserve fund, additional debt was raised, until June 7 it will still be raised, after June 7 its fate is unknown…
- At whose expense? And 320 billion drams only the increase in the interest of the state debt, which could increase the pension of each pensioner by 50,000 drams. In other words, it happened that the pensioner was cheated.
Details in the video.
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168: Don’t Betray Your Principles, Don’t Surrender, Don’t Become a Tool. This is Agh
April 22, 2026
Satik Seyranyan’s guest in “Pressing” program doctor of political science, former chairman of the RA National Assembly Tigran Torosyan is
The main points of the interview are below.
- The authorities are in an unprecedentedly bad, unfavorable position shortly before the elections, and there are obvious manifestations of this. Panic is already evident from Nikol Pashinyan’s behavior. When a person is no longer able to stay within the limits set by his position, what is it that is not panic? In addition, the number of cases when citizens express their dissatisfaction with the work of the government has significantly increased.
- Today, various public opinion polls show that since 2021 the rating of the government has dropped significantly. According to that, today the problem is not the government, the rating of the government is very low, the problem is how the opposition forces will work in order to have more than half of the votes in the Parliament.
- You should always give opportunities to the youth, but you should not cut the link between the generations. Next to the youth there should be people with experience.
- The opposition must do everything to prevent the authorities from reproducing, otherwise this continuous decline and disaster may have an obvious continuation after the elections… I am sure that the government is waiting for its reproduction to finish the disaster it has created. The task of the voter, the citizen, at this moment should be to free the country from this disaster, but also to submit demands to the opposition regarding what to do next.
- There are no full-fledged parties in Armenia that would meet the modern requirements of parties. There are parties created 10 days ago that have announced their participation in the elections. These are the spoiler or scattering or, as it is customary to say, vote dusting parties.
- The ruling party, CP, will not exist if it is not in power. There was a party that endured and did not collapse after losing power. it is the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), and I think it would be right for it to participate in these elections. RPA is an exceptional party. there was both opposition and government. His experience is the experience of Armenia. It would be right to take responsibility and go to the elections, because the opposition that exists today clearly has less experience than the RPA. I have known many of them for more than 30 years. they are honest, patriotic, upright people.
- A party is an idea-based, voluntary association of people. If the political forces of Armenia really want to bring about radical positive changes in the country, they should not only strive to come to power, but also move on to solving the internal organizational issues of their structures.
- The most shameful thing is that they have moved on to terrorizing people, including school children. Even schoolchildren are subjected to terror… How did they treat the school-age boy Davit Minasyan during the liturgy in St. Anna Church? No self-respecting person should enter a church with bodyguards. It is a sanctuary. It was a specific terror that was carried out on two brothers in St. Anne’s Church:
- By the authorities in 2021 administrative levers were also used, but still it was not possible to get more than 26%, they could not.
- In Armenia, there is a mythical idea about external influence on elections. That influence on the outcome of the elections cannot have an impact of even 1 percent. In this case, there are manifestations of support that can have a negative impact, for example, the support of Turkey and Azerbaijan to Nikol Pashinyan. The result of the election will be decided by the RA citizen. The opposition must actively work with people to explain and convince them to go to the polling station on June 7. 2021 the opposition forces could not convince people to go to the polling station, that’s why they lost.
- The government that receives the support of the absolute majority of citizens is legitimate.
- Unfortunately, the political component in the agenda of the opposition forces that applied for participation is incomplete. In particular, their position on Artsakh is worrying. We should not say that we should wait for Artsakh to be safe for the people of Artsakh to return, but we should work so that the return is safe. The opinion of the Armenian people and the Armenian government regarding the Artsakh issue are not the same, and that is gratifying. The overwhelming majority of our people is of the opinion that the issue of Artsakh is not closed. There is no need to approach the Artsakh problem with fear and caution:
- Regarding TRIPP, perhaps what constrains the opposition is that the US is interested in it. But you have to protect your interests so that they respect you and talk to you. If Armenia follows that path, not only geopolitical problems will arise, but Armenia will also lose its influence.
- Armenia must correct both the terrible and catastrophic mistakes made by these authorities and the mistakes that came before them.
- Nikol Pashinyan scares citizens with war, blackmails them. People who fear war, however, should remember what happened in the last 8 years and what happened before that. We have found ourselves in such a situation that today Artsakh and significant areas of Armenia are under the occupation of Azerbaijan. Is this peace? When one side refuses to defend itself, to resist, the other side no longer needs to fight. It is no coincidence that Aliyev said: we will not enter Yerevan with tanks, but with passenger cars… Let people look at the facts: where are the Azerbaijanis today, and where were they before 2018? So these are disaster, war, losses, bringers of genocide, ethnic cleansing. He brought war, disaster, genocide and ethnic cleansing. He did not and cannot bring peace. Garegin Nzhdeh did not say: go to war, he said: be ready for war, have a strong will and a strong army. We have been peaceful when we resisted the enemy, when we defended our home and land. At that time, father and son Aliyev did not get along, they had cut ties. Just 2 years before they came to power, Ilham Aliyev complained that behind closed doors he was being forced to recognize the independence of Artsakh. There can be real peace only after these are gone, when the other person understands: If he commits an encroachment, he will receive a well-deserved response:
- In these elections, either the opposition will win or the opposition will lose. In other words, the government can remain in power only if the opposition does not do the relevant work until June 7.
- Is the problem of Azerbaijani refugees new and Azerbaijan did not know that there are Azerbaijani refugees? The number of Armenians who became refugees from Azerbaijan is about 400,000, from Baku, Kirovabad, Sumgait, Shahumyan, Getashen… these are the figures of the United Nations and which are not talked about today. If you are a competent government, you will demand from the international courts that the problem be considered fully and impartially. At that time, it will be clear that Azerbaijan is obliged to compensate the Armenian refugees, and this should not include the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh, who must return to Artsakh and fully exercise their right to self-determination.
- Azerbaijan used to talk about one million refugees, but it was quickly revealed in international courts that their number is 8,600. Azerbaijan was just embarrassed… On any issue we have strong arguments to show that we have counter-arguments on any issue raised by Azerbaijan.
- It is not necessary for Azerbaijan to recognize the territorial integrity of Armenia, who is Azerbaijan to recognize or not to recognize, it just needs to respect the UN Charter, which states that UN member states are obliged to recognize and respect each other’s territorial integrity.
- A state is a state, an unrecognized state is also a state, such as Artsakh.
- International law will return to its place, because humanity cannot throw away regulatory norms, considering the relations and conflicts of so many states. I specifically want to say that the people of Artsakh will return to Artsakh and achieve the recognition of their self-determination, only on one condition, in case of appropriate professional work.
- Have we seen the leader of any country stick his country’s imagined borders to his chest… Of course not. It does so because it is unable to protect its country’s borders. A head of state who respects himself, his people and his country can never show such behavior:
- The situation is hopeless for the authorities, if the opposition political forces work fully in the remaining period, work properly with the people, explain to the people, prepare their representatives in the commissions… In this case, at least a few opposition forces can gather more votes than the government.
- Putin strongly warned not to make a mistake and take drastic steps, otherwise the consequences will be severe.
- Anyone saying the nonsense that “Armenia should join the European Union” should be asked: what must Armenia do to become a member of the EU, what conditions must it meet, and how many years will it take? Ukraine and Georgia are a few steps ahead of Armenia in this sense and are not yet able to become EU members. Even if we think that joining the EU will be useful for Armenia, Armenia is far from it:
- Armenia does not have the right to enter between states with geopolitical conflicts in order to commit hooliganism and steal something. It will inevitably be followed by punishment. it can’t be like that, it doesn’t happen like that:
- The European political summit taking place in Armenia on May 4 has no significance. It’s a well-wishing, no-leverage gathering. It is not right to overemphasize this meeting. Armenian citizens should not care if European officials came and stayed in Yerevan for, let’s say, two days. Unfortunately, today’s European officials have very low knowledge and often say things that are laughed at within their own countries.
- People working in the state apparatus, do not betray your principles, do not leave, stay and work without violating your principles as a citizen of the Republic of Armenia. Don’t settle, don’t give up and don’t become a tool. When a person goes to the voting booth, he is free and alone. It is a lie that the election is controlled at the polls. This is spread by the authorities in order to scare and oppress. Vote according to your principles. Money is important, but not everything.
Details in the video.
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RFE/RL – Armenian Ombudswoman Responds To Ruben Vardanyan
- Ruzanna Stepanian
Responding to an appeal from businessman and philanthropist Ruben Vardanyan, Armenia’s human rights ombudswoman, Anahi Minasian, insisted on Wednesday that Azerbaijani authorities have not offered her to visit him and 18 other Armenian prisoners held in Azerbaijan.
“I urge you to consider organizing a visit to Baku with your participation, and, under appropriate conditions, with the participation of relatives of Armenian prisoners as well,” Vardanyan said in a statement circulated through his family on Tuesday.
Vardanyan revealed that he recently met with Manasian’s Azerbaijani opposite number, Sabina Aliyeva, to discuss his concerns about the captives’ “everyday conditions, medical care, legal matters, humanitarian needs, and diplomatic issues.”
“In the course of our conversation, it was also mentioned that the possibility of your visit to Baku had already been discussed and that the Azerbaijani side had expressed readiness to facilitate such a visit,” he added, appealing to Manasian.
Manasian responded by saying that she has received no such “official proposal” from Baku or “confirmation” of the Azerbaijani side’s readiness to organize the trip. In a written statement, the ombudswoman sounded skeptical about the idea, saying that she has no mandate to inspect prison conditions in any foreign nation.
Siranush Sahakian, a human rights lawyer representing the Armenian captives in the European Court of Human Rights, also did not back the idea.
“Armenia’s human rights defender cannot carry out independent activities in Azerbaijan,” she told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service.
Sahakian said that the Azerbaijani authorities could use Manasian’s visit to Baku to cover up their ill-treatment of the Armenian prisoners. She pointed out that they continue to deny representatives of the Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) access to the prisoners.
Sahakian also said that the Armenian government is in a much a better position than Manasian to campaign for their release and repatriation. The government maintains that it has been doing its best for that purpose. Its critics dismiss these assurances.
Vardanyan, who held the second-highest post in Nagorno-Karabakh’s leadership from November 2022 to February 2023, was arrested at an Azerbaijani checkpoint in the Lachin corridor in September 2023 as he fled Karabakh along with its entire ethnic Armenian population. Seven other former Karabakh Armenian leaders were also arrested during the exodus that followed an Azerbaijani military offensive.
Five of them were sentenced to life imprisonment while the two others as well as Vardanyan received 20-year jail sentences in February at the end of yearlong trials denounced by Amnesty International as a “travesty.” They all denied a long list of accusations brought against them.
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Moscow Doubles Down On Warnings To Yerevan
A senior Russian official elaborated on Wednesday on what Moscow sees as a heavy economic price that will be paid by Armenia if its government keeps seeking to join the European Union.
Alexei Shevtsov, the deputy secretary of Russia’s Security Council, said the South Caucasus country would lose its tariff-free access to the Russian market, a significant discount on the price of Russian natural gas imported by it as well as many Russian tourists. The Armenian economy would shrink considerably as a result, he said.
Shevtsov noted similar warnings that were publicly issued by Russian President Vladimir Putting during his April 1 meeting with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian. Putin said, in particular, that the Armenian government’s further drift to the EU is “not compatible” with Armenia’s continued membership in the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), a Russian-led trade bloc. He also stressed that the Russian gas price for Armenia is set well below the international market-based levels.
“Indeed, an association agreement with the European Union, which is a mandatory condition for joining the EU, cannot be concluded if Armenia remains a party to the EEU treaty at that point,” Shevtsov told journalists. “Accordingly, it would be necessary to withdraw from the treaty.”
“In practice, Armenian farmers, including alcohol producers, would have to look for new export markets,” he said, according to Russian news agencies. “With the introduction of customs duties, their goods would cease to be competitive. Freight transport costs would rise while investments would be significantly reduced. Yerevan would also have to forget about preferential supplies of energy.”
According to Armenian government data, Russia accounted for 35.8 percent of Armenia’s foreign trade last year, followed by China (12.3 percent) and the EU (11.7 percent). Its share has increased significantly during Pashinian’s eight-year rule.
Shevtsov indicated that Moscow would also curb the influx of Russian tourists who he said bring Armenia’s services sector $1 billion in annual revenue
“Given that tourism accounts for approximately 13.5 percent of Armenia’s GDP and that almost a quarter of its officially employed population works in this sector, this would deal a severe blow to the country’s economy and its residents,” he said.
Russian officials have regularly issued such warnings since Pashinian’s government enacted last year a law calling for the “start of a process of Armenia’s accession to the European Union.” Moscow is doubling down on them in the run-up to Armenian parliamentary elections.
In their election manifesto published late last week, Pashinian and his Civil Contract party made clear that despite these warnings, they will continue to pursue Armenia’s eventual membership in the EU if they win the June 7 polls.
Yerevan is due to host on May 4-5 a first-ever EU-Armenian summit viewed by local analysts as a pre-election show of EU support for Pashinian and his pro-Western foreign policy. The 27-nation bloc reinforced this perception on Tuesday when it approved the dispatch of another EU mission tasked with helping the Armenian government cope with “hybrid threats” emanating from abroad, presumably Russia.
The EU already decided last month to send a separate “hybrid rapid response team” to Yerevan for the upcoming elections. It deployed a similar mission in Moldova for the parliamentary elections held there last September. Two Moldovan opposition parties deemed pro-Russian were disqualified from the vote won by the former Soviet republic’s pro-Western leadership.
Armenia’s leading opposition groups, notably a bloc led by Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetian, are concerned that they too could be barred from running in the polls. Putin warned Pashinian against such bans during their April 1 talks in Moscow.
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RFE/RL – Satellite Photos Confirm Destruction Of Karabakh’s Largest Church
- Susan Badalian
Satellite photographs obtained by RFE/RL confirm that Azerbaijani authorities have recently demolished Nagorno-Karabakh’s main Armenian cathedral.
The images show an empty space at the site of the imposing Holy Mother of God Cathedral in Stepanakert. Contacted by RFE/RL’s Azerbaijani Service on Wednesday, Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry declined to comment on its demolition.
The cathedral was consecrated by the Armenian Apostolic Church in 2019 after almost 13 years of construction. Its underground section was used by many Stepanakert residents as a bomb shelter during the 2020 Armenian-Azerbaijani war.
Sergei Shahverdian, a former Karabakh official now based in Yerevan, was the first to report on Tuesday that the cathedral appears to have been torn down. It was not visible in fresh videos of central Stepanakert posted by Azerbaijani social media users and cited by Shahverdian.
Armenian media published last week photographs suggesting that another, smaller Armenian church in Stepanakert has been razed to the ground. It had been built in the 1990s.
Several other Karabakh Armenian churches have also reportedly been destroyed after the 2020 Armenian-Azerbaijan war and Azerbaijan’s full recapture of Karabakh in 2023. Also, Baku announced in early 2022 plans to erase Armenian inscriptions from medieval Karabakh churches. The move prompted serious concern from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. The European Parliament likewise condemned “the elimination of the traces of Armenian cultural heritage in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.”
The Armenian government essentially stopped accusing Azerbaijan of systematically desecrating or destroying Armenian monuments in Karabakh after Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian first recognized Azerbaijani sovereignty over the territory in 2022. The government remained silent on Wednesday about the demolition of the Stepanakert cathedral. Pashinian has repeatedly declared in recent years that the Karabakh issue is closed for his administration.
Exiled Karabakh activists, who fled the region in 2023 along with its entire Armenian population, say Yerevan’s silence has only encouraged Baku to continue the church demolitions. One of them, Artak Beglarian, believes Pashinian’s government could have stopped that process by raising the issue on the international stage.