March: 27, 2026
Today, the Anti-Corruption Court, under the leadership of Judge Givi Hovhannisyan, is conducting another court session with joint criminal proceedings.
The case of the so-called “Diesel”, the resurrected fake, by which President Serzh Sargsyan was already acquitted once, is being investigated.
Let’s remind that the powers of judge Vahe Misakyan in that case have already been terminated under another pretext.
At the beginning of the previous court session, procedural issues were examined: objections, objections, and then the issue of property liability was discussed. The public prosecutor presented the content of the claim.
Expressing his position, Serzh Sargsyan’s defense attorney Amram Makinyan said that the Appellate Court did not doubt the innocence of President Serzh Sargsyan, and the materials of this case were collected in violation of criminal law.
Judge Givi Hovhannisyan recognized Serzh Sargsyan and the other two defendants as property managers.
At the beginning of today’s court session, defense attorney Amram Makinyan reminded the court again that during the preparation of materials, the deadlines for initiating the case were violated, and this was recorded by the Court of Appeal.
“During the new examination of the case, the Anti-corruption Court should examine whether the 2013 Sergo Karapetyan acted according to the relevant decision of the government. This needs to be cleared up no matter what. The appeals court did not doubt the innocence of President Serzh Sargsyan in any way. And this circumstance does not give Mr. President the opportunity to submit a property claim,” said Amram Makinyan.
After listening to the parties, the court decided to give the final solution to the property claim with a final judicial act.
Next, the court moved to the stage of examination of the evidence, the order and order of their examination.
The public prosecutors presented their order of sifting the evidence. Expressing his position, Amram Makinyan said that there were no proofs in what was listed, they were data on the economic activities of various companies, various banking secrets.
Next, the accused were asked if they confirmed their intention to be questioned.
“I can’t say. rather, no, but according to the situation, I will understand,” said Serzh Sargsyan.
The answer of Barsegh Beglaryan, the owner of “Flash” company, was similar.
The court session was postponed. The next court session will take place in 2026. May 12 at 3:30 p.m.
Details in the video.
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“What does that person know, what percentage of weapons have been used, have not served, or been used?”
March: 27, 2026
Nikol Pashinyan gave a briefing yesterday after the Government session, during which he also referred to the military operations carried out by Azerbaijan against Artsakh on September 19-20, 2023. He first said that he does not agree that Azerbaijan has implemented a genocidal policy in Artsakh.
He again insisted that they “did not fight” in Artsakh at that time, they “ran away”.
“And those myths: they fought to the end, etc., by the way, if necessary, we will declassify those data. I am sure, this dough will carry a lot of water, we will wait for it to carry well, so that I publish it at the right time, like the documents of the Nagorno Karabakh negotiation process, it is a lie, nothing like this happened, they ran away, they looted.” noted he
Military expert, freedom fighter Martin Yesayan Instead of Nikol Pashinyan, he publicly apologizes to the parents and relatives of all the martyrs, the missing, the wounded, expressing his respect for the memory of the martyrs. He says that he is simply ashamed when a person who has not even served in the army can belittle the exploits of the boys to such an extent.
“In Artsakh, on September 19-20, 2023, within one day, we lost more than 200 boys on the battlefield, and the enemy lost thousands, that’s why the foreign intelligence has always told Azerbaijan: “Isn’t this you, you have been under a total blockade for 9 months, now you are giving losses?” Most of the weapons and ammunition have been used, one of the guys called me yesterday angrily, he says: “Have you heard what this ignorant government is saying?” The boys are very upset, they say: “How long will all this continue?” No, it will not continue for long, everyone will give their own answer.
I will give only one example. Only in the “Khachen Gorge” in the direction of Martakert, in the direction of only one position, the enemy gave 700 casualties, how come the people of Artsakh did not fight? 168.am–said in a conversation with Martin Yesayan.
He mentioned that he does not want even his enemy to go through what the Artsakh citizen went through. During the hot days of the war, when it was not possible to transport weapons to the positions due to lack of fuel, people used their donkeys and horses to carry weapons to the positions through the fire.
“What kind of attitude is this towards the fighting boys? Who ran away? Show me one nation in the world that leaves its home and homeland and runs away, if it is not subjected to genocide and ethnic cleansing. By God’s testimony, we fought, we fought until the last second, to save our homeland, land.
What does that person know, what percentage of weapons were used, he has neither served, nor is he an expert, nor has he held a weapon in his hand in his life, not counting that during the April war he went to Artsakh in May, when the war was stopped,” added our interlocutor.
Continuing, the freedom fighter stressed that before making certain statements, the authorities should at least be afraid of God’s judgment, because they will answer for the loss of the homeland, the lives of the fallen boys.
“What the RA leader announces today, he announces on behalf of the leaders of Azerbaijan and Turkey.
I am a big man, I saw with my own eyes what happened in Artsakh during the one-day war, and how our boys fought.
Several hundred enemy soldiers were killed in the western part of Stepanakert. If such a person spoke who had fought, had traveled a certain path, I would have remained silent, but someone who has not traveled the path of battle is speaking. Nikol Pashinyan has chosen a very bad path, very bad, this will not lead him, nor our country and people to any good place.
Please, be sure to publish that our heroes did everything possible in one day to keep Artsakh, but being alone, in the Azerbaijani blockade, they could not stand until the end,” emphasized Martin Yesayan.
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Why was Gagik Hambaryan called to the Investigative Committee? Varazdat Harutyunyan m
March: 27, 2026
According to 168.am, Gagik Hambaryan, political scientist from Gyumri, lecturer at Shirak State University, was invited to the Investigative Committee today.
His representative, a member of the “Five Human Rights Defenders Initiative”, lawyer Varazdat Harutyunyan, confirmed the information in a conversation with us, noting that Gagik Hambaryan, a “bastion of democracy” in Armenia, was charged under the 2nd part of Article 490 of the RA Criminal Code, namely:
The threat to publish defamatory information about a judge, prosecutor, investigator, head of an investigative body, investigative body, lawyer, representative, expert, or enforcer, or a close relative or close relative of the specified persons, or someone under the supervision, care, or upbringing of the specified persons, or causing other harm to the rights and legal interests of the specified persons, or to use violence against them, to destroy or damage property, in connection with the legal service or professional activities of the specified persons or exclusively as a judge, prosecutor, investigator, investigator head of the body, investigative body, lawyer, representative, expert or enforcer or a close relative of the said persons or a close relative or the said persons with the circumstance of being under the upbringing, care or supervision,
shall be punished by a fine in the amount of ten times to thirty times, or public works for a period of one hundred to two hundred hours, or restriction of freedom for a maximum period of two years, or short-term imprisonment for a maximum period of two months, or imprisonment for a maximum period of three years.
2. Publishing defamatory information about the persons provided for in part 1 of this article or causing other damage to the rights and legal interests of the said persons, or destroying or damaging the property of the said persons, in connection with the legal official or professional activities of the said persons:
shall be punished by restriction of freedom for a period of one to three years, or short-term imprisonment for a period of one to two months, or imprisonment for a period of two to five years.
By the way, this is the same article that is currently being investigated in the court regarding public-politician Edgar Ghazaryan.
“Keeping in mind that we were warned about the inadmissibility of publishing the pre-trial secret and we don’t want to touch on the content of the accusation, but I should mention that, naturally, Mr. Hambaryan did not accept the accusation. A ban on his absence was imposed on him, and the publication that is the basis of the accusation, for which Gagik Hambaryan was charged, in my opinion, fully fits into the framework of the fundamental right of a person to express himself freely, which is protected both by our Constitution and by the European Convention on Human Rights, regarding which there are also a number of precedent decisions of the ECHR.”said Varazdat Harutyunyan.
According to him, unfortunately, these decisions are often about our neighboring countries, Turkey and Azerbaijan, where the level of freedom of speech is quite low, and sharp criticism of one or another official is often persecuted in those countries.
“It is with pain that we have to record that Armenia has, in fact, taken the same benchmark in terms of restrictions on freedom of speech.” said Varazdat Harutyunyan, adding that additional information will be provided in case of developments in this case.
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RFE/RL – Chechen Woman Buried In Armenia Months After Suspected ‘Honor Killing
A Chechen woman who was found dead in Armenia last year in what activists describe as a likely “honor killing” has been laid to rest in Yerevan five months after her death, Armenian authorities said.
Aishat Baymuradova, 23, was buried in the Armenian capital with state funding after her funeral was organized by a local nongovernmental organization, according to Armenia’s Investigative Committee. Her body had remained in Yerevan for months after no relatives came to collect it, despite repeated notifications sent to the Russian Federation. Baymuradova is survived by a young son, who reportedly remains with his father in Chechnya.
Baymuradova was found dead in a rented apartment on October 20, three days after she was reported missing. Human rights activists say the woman, who had fled the Russian Federation’s Chechen Republic to Armenia about a year earlier to escape domestic violence, was likely strangled.
Activists have described the killing as a suspected transnational “honor crime” and have pointed to possible involvement by individuals linked to Chechen security structures.
In the months following the killing, activists criticized Armenian law enforcement bodies for what they described as delays in the investigation and a failure to prevent suspects from leaving the country.
About four months after the incident, Armenian authorities identified two Russian citizens, Karina Iminova and Said-Hamzat Baysarov, as suspects in the murder and placed them on a wanted list.
Armenian and Russian human rights groups say the two suspects have ties to the regime of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov.
Artur Sakunts, head of the Vanadzor-based Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly, said such links are visible in open sources. “Direct ties of the suspects in Aishat’s murder are evident at least through social media,” Sakunts told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service.
He also said that criminal cases previously initiated against the suspects in Russia were later suspended. According to Sakunts, Baysarov had been accused of financing the Islamic State terrorist organization, while Iminova had been accused of threatening to kill another person with a knife. Neither case resulted in accountability, he said.
Sakunts suggested that in such cases, criminal prosecution can be used as a mechanism to control or recruit individuals.
Earlier accounts by activists indicated that Baymuradova had been lured to the apartment shortly before her disappearance after meeting individuals she had contacted online, including a woman allegedly linked to people close to Kadyrov. Security camera footage reportedly showed several people entering the building that evening, including a Chechen man.
Activists have said the case may be the first known instance of a Chechen woman being killed abroad after fleeing domestic abuse. In many other “honor killing” cases, they say, women are tracked down and returned to Chechnya, where they are later killed.
Baymuradova was reportedly forced into marriage at 20 to a 29-year-old man she had met only a few times. Friends said she suffered physical abuse, was monitored by cameras inside her home, and was often locked indoors without access to her phone.
According to Armenian authorities, Baymuradova had not formally sought protection in Armenia or informed them or local nongovernmental organizations that she had fled Chechnya because of domestic violence.
The Chechen woman’s case echoes that of Fatima Zurabova, a 21-year-old woman from the Russian Federation’s Republic of Ingushetia who fled to Armenia in 2024 after alleged domestic abuse.
Zurabova’s relatives, including a senior police official, reportedly traveled to Yerevan to try to persuade her to return, but she later relocated to a third country.
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Yerevan To Host First EU-Armenia Summit In May
Armenia will host its first-ever summit with the European Union on May 4-5, the Armenian Foreign Ministry announced on Thursday.
President of the European Council Antonio Costa and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen will represent the EU at the summit in Yerevan, and Armenia will be represented by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian, the ministry said.
Ahead of the summit, the European leaders will also attend the 8th European Political Community meeting, which is due to take place in the Armenian capital on May 4.
A statement issued by the ministry said the EU-Armenia summit will focus on “strengthening bilateral relations, in particular, issues related to the economy, energy, transport, digital affairs, and people-to-people contacts.”
It added that leaders will also discuss “progress related to ensuring peace, security, mutual connectivity, and prosperity in the South Caucasus, as well as current global challenges.”
“The EU-Armenia summit reflects the unprecedented dynamism of the bilateral partnership over the past years. EU relations with Armenia are based on the EU-Armenia Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA), in force since 2021, and the Strategic Agenda for the EU-Armenia Partnership, which was adopted at the meeting of the EU-Armenia Partnership Council held in December 2025 with the participation of Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas, and EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos. The EU is a key partner for Armenia’s reform agenda and for trade and investments,” the Armenian Foreign Ministry said.
Armenia adopted legislation in 2025 declaring the start of a process of the country’s accession to the European Union.
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France, Armenia Eye Expansion Of Defense Cooperation
France and Armenia have emphasized the need for expanding their defense cooperation during high-level talks held in Paris on Friday.
Armenian Defense Minister Suren Papikian met with French Prime Minister Sebastien Le Corneille to discuss issues related to “the development and deepening of bilateral ties in the defense sector,” according to the Armenian Ministry of Defense.
“The parties, particularly, emphasized the importance of the continuous strengthening of the bilateral strategic partnership and emphasized the need to expand cooperation in the defense sector,” the ministry said in a statement.
It added that Le Corneille presented Papikian with the Legion of Honor (Légion d’honneur), France’s highest civil and military order of merit, which had been awarded to him by decree of French President Emmanuel Macron. The French prime minister was quoted as praising Papikian’s “great contribution to the development of Armenia-France relations.”
During his visit, Papikian also held talks on March 27 with French Minister of Armed Forces and Veterans Affairs Catherine Vautrin. According to the Armenian side, the two officials agreed to “deepen and expand cooperation, bringing it to a qualitatively new, higher level, as well as to continue joint initiatives aimed at strengthening defense capabilities.”
France and Armenia signed agreements on military cooperation in October 2023 providing for the supply of French weapons to Yerevan, including radars and missiles, as well as advisory support for army reforms.
Both Yerevan and Paris have stressed the “purely defensive” character of the French arms supplies. Armenia, which is seeking to diversify its security partnerships and reform its military, has repeatedly stated that it has no aggressive intentions towards its neighbors.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said on Thursday that some of the modern weapons acquired by Armenia in recent years, which also included French equipment, will be displayed in Yerevan’s central square on May 28, when the country marks Republic Day.
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Armenian, Azeri FMs Discuss ‘Regional Issues’ In Latest Phone Call
Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan discussed “regional issues” with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Jeyhun Bayramov, in a phone call reported by his press office on Friday.
The call marks the second contact between the two top diplomats since the start of the war in Iran.
“The ministers noted with satisfaction the positive developments in the further normalization process between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” the ministry’s readout of the phone call said.
It added that the sides also discussed “regional issues” and “engagements within multilateral platforms.”
The previous phone call between Mirzoyan and Bayramov took place on March 5, hours after Azerbaijan’s Nakhichevan exclave was struck by what Baku described as drones launched from neighboring Iran. At the time, the two sides “expressed concern and noted the importance of refraining from actions that could further escalate tensions.”
Regular contacts between the top diplomats of Armenia and Azerbaijan come as the leaders of the two South Caucasus countries describe their long-running conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh as being over.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev reached agreements during a summit in Washington hosted last August by U.S. President Donald Trump, paving the way for normalization of relations.
Following those agreements, Azerbaijan allowed transit of goods to Armenia through its territory and began exporting energy products to Yerevan.
However, Aliyev has linked the signing of a final peace agreement – initialed by Mirzoyan and Bayramov in Washington – to constitutional changes in Armenia. He has called on Yerevan to remove a reference to the 1990 Declaration of Independence, which Baku says implies territorial claims against Azerbaijan.
Pashinian has pledged to hold a national referendum to adopt a new constitution that, in particular, will have no reference to the declaration that cites a 1989 act on the unification of Soviet Armenia and the then Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast within Soviet Azerbaijan.
Nagorno-Karabakh, which was controlled by ethnic Armenian forces since the early 1990s, remained at the core of the dispute for decades. Azerbaijan regained control of the region militarily in 2020-2023 in conflicts that left thousands of soldiers dead on both sides.
The fighting displaced more than 100,000 ethnic Armenians from the region, most of whom relocated to Armenia.
In his recent statements, Pashinian has reaffirmed that the Karabakh movement has been discontinued under his government and that Armenia does not seek the collective return of Armenians to the region.
Advancing a peace agenda with Azerbaijan is central to Pashinian’s campaign ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled for June.
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RFE/RL – Activist Charged After Altercation With Parliament Speaker
- Naira Bulghadarian
- Shoghik Galstian
One man has been charged after a street altercation with Armenian Parliament Speaker Alen Simonian that led to his and a fellow activist’s detention by police on Thursday.
Mikael Markarian and Arsen Vardanian, a member of the little-known Pan-Armenian Front party, said they were detained for failing to comply with “the police officer’s lawful demand”, but were later released after being subjected to an administrative fine.
Armenia’s Investigative Committee later said that as part of a criminal investigation launched in connection with the incident Markarian was also charged with “committing an act of hooliganism with the use of information or communication technologies.” He was again detained later on Friday. The charge Markarian is facing carries a penalty ranging from a fine to up to five years in prison.
The incident occurred Thursday on a street adjacent to the parliament building and involved an exchange of insults between the activists and Simonian, a senior member of the ruling Civil Contract party led by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian.
Video from a live broadcast on Markarian’s Facebook page shows the confrontation began after Simonian declined to speak with the activist. The footage captures both sides using offensive language, with each accusing the other of initiating the verbal abuse.
The altercation took place amid a protest by relatives of soldiers missing from the 2020 war. The protesters have been calling on lawmakers to publish findings from a report on the conflict prepared in 2025 by an ad hoc parliamentary committee. The committee’s head, Andranik Kocharian, has said its public release was blocked by Simonian.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Simonian described the confrontation as a provocation organized against him by a “political unit.” He stressed that he had no dispute with relatives of soldiers killed or missing in action, denouncing attempts by “political activists” to exploit their protest.
“I know who organized it. I am sure that the closer we get to the elections, the more such cases will occur, I know where it is directed from,” Simonian said, without naming anyone.
“To come and mix with the parents and relatives of killed soldiers and pursue a political goal, to come and turn on the phone and make sexual insults to the chairman of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia… How is that possible? Am I not a citizen?” he added.
Simonian said that three “entities” could assess the incident: law-enforcement bodies, the public, and his fellow party members. He said the matter had not been discussed within Civil Contract.
Deputy Parliament Speaker Ruben Rubinian, also a member of Civil Contract, later said the incident would not be discussed at an upcoming party board meeting, adding that he saw “no need” for such discussion.
The March 26 confrontation is the latest in a series of public incidents involving Simonian.
In 2023, he ordered his bodyguards to overpower a heckler at a popular dining area in central Yerevan before spitting in the man’s face after being called a “traitor.” In 2024, Simonian again directed his bodyguards to intervene against a woman displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh who confronted him at a military cemetery in Yerevan, calling her a “garbage cat.”
In November 2025, Armenia’s National Security Service arrested two opposition activists and podcasters after the parliament speaker accused them of verbally abusing him during a podcast. The two were charged with hooliganism but they denied the accusations, saying they were responding to offensive language used by Simonian.
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The war against Iran goes beyond the logic of a quick war. who is the thread?
March: 27, 2026
While the US-Israeli war against Iran continues, US President Donald Trump, speaking about the so-called negotiations with Iran, made a number of harsh statements regarding Iran, negotiations and allies during the meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers.
He continued to insist that Washington is “conducting very meaningful negotiations with the right people in Tehran” and stressed that the conflict “will end soon”. According to him, Iran is trying to make a deal because “Iran has been destroyed”. According to Trump, the US has destroyed 90% of Iran’s capabilities, and Iran, according to him, is “begging for a deal.”
At the same time, he pointed out the high level of Iranian negotiators, noting that they are “very smart”. Speaking about military aid, the US president allowed the possibility of resource redistribution. Ammunition intended for Ukraine can be directed in other directions. Trump noted that the US is not dependent on the Strait of Hormuz, and emphasized that its opening would be possible in case of a “right deal” with Iran.
On the Truth Social page, Trump wrote that he is postponing the strikes on Iran’s energy infrastructure for another 10 days. “At the request of the Iranian government, I am postponing the phase of destruction of power plants by 10 days, until April 6, 2026,” the US president wrote.
The talks, according to Trump, are ongoing, and despite statements to the contrary, “they are going very well.”
Despite this, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has called on the entire civilian population of the region to stay away from areas adjacent to the locations of US forces. “The cowardly American-Zionist forces are trying to use civilian places and innocent people as human shields. We advise you to immediately leave the places where the American forces are stationed so that no harm is caused to you,” said the statement, which was published on the Sepah News website.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has announced that strikes against Iran will be intensified and expanded in response to Iran’s missile attacks on civilians.
“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I warned the Iranian terrorist regime to stop the rocket attacks on the civilian population of Israel. Despite the warnings, the shelling continues, and therefore ISIL strikes against Iran will intensify and expand to include additional targets and areas that help the regime produce and use weapons against Israeli citizens. They will pay a heavy price for this war crime,” stated Israel Katz.
The war continues, although talks about negotiations do not stop, as well as complaints that the war is too costly for the United States.
The Wall Street Journal writes that the US armed forces suffered a total of 2.9 billion dollars in losses during the first three weeks of the armed conflict with Iran. According to the periodicals, the amount of damage done to American military equipment and replacement of damaged equipment is estimated from 1.4 to 2.9 billion dollars. The WSJ notes that most of the damage was done by Iranian missiles and drones. Despite all this, according to the American mass media, the Pentagon is also considering a ground operation, for which higher costs are required.
Russian analyst Vladimir Yevseyev in a conversation with 168.am said that the situation goes beyond the logic of a quick war and enters the phase of prolonged, exhausting confrontation. According to his assessment, the initial calculations in Washington and Tel Aviv were based on breaking Iran’s military and nuclear potential through short-term and high-tech pressure, but this scenario did not materialize, Iran not only retained the ability to strike back, but also showed that it is ready to confront, using its main advantages – geopolitical position and energy leverage.
“And against this background, the tension around the Strait of Hormuz became a key factor in the war, because it is here that a significant part of the global oil supply is concentrated. Iran has shown that it can influence not only military, but also global economic processes, increasing its value at any negotiating table. This is the reason why, in the conditions of military pressure, Tehran is not in a hurry to make concessions. And the active talks about the negotiations, which are circulating especially from the American side, reflect political and informational tactics rather than real diplomatic progress. Iran continues to deny the fact of direct negotiations, accepting only mediated communication. This is important, which shows that the parties have not yet reached the level where a real compromise is possible. Their demands remain fundamentally incompatible.” said the analyst. He believes that a rather interesting balance of power is formed against this background.
According to the analyst, although the US continues to maintain its role, its political position has become more complicated: the war is complicated, expensive, long-term, problematic in terms of internal politics, and uncertain and unclear in terms of goals.
“Israel continues to maintain the most rigid line and is interested in the extension, because it understands that it is not possible to quickly achieve the set goals. And Iran, contrary to many predictions, managed to organize the resistance well, strengthening its positions. All this shows that it is too early to talk about the end of the war. It would be appropriate to say that the conflict is changing its form. We notice that the intensity of open military clashes is changing, but the tension remains. In the future, we may witness similar trends. The most realistic scenario is the scenario of de-escalation without a final agreement, that is, the parties will try to reduce the intensity of military strikes, but will not abandon their positions. At the current stage, the side that is able to impose its agenda on the political and economic levels, rather than winning on the military field, is in the most advantageous position. And with this logic, Iran has currently managed to disappoint many and resist, becoming the dictator of conditions. However, this is not the final result, the war continues, negotiations continue between many different players. Let’s not forget that there is talk of a ground operation, it can also be unpredictable, although many people think that the USA has no chance in this matter. predicted the analyst.
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I call on all Armenians not to be afraid. Samvel Karapetyan
March: 27, 2026
Our nation needs unity and hope. This was announced by Samvel Karapetyan.
“It is sad how someone temporarily standing at the head of the country sows fear and division in order to maintain power.
He will lose in June because people are tired of divisions and the atmosphere of fear.
I promise you that as Prime Minister, I will unite the country and make it strong with a strong economy and strong peace.
The promise is that with me, as the Prime Minister, the coming September and every month after that will be peaceful. We will do more. we will lower taxes for businesses, create new jobs for people and improve the quality of life. We will have stronger diplomacy and a stronger defense that will guarantee peace with deeds, not words.
As for achieving lasting peace:
1. The outgoing government of the country promised peace, but brought three wars in which it lost. Why should anyone trust them after so many failures?
2. The country’s outgoing leadership is dividing our nation and waging a war of words against its people. If they bring conflict within the country, why should anyone trust them to keep Armenia safe?
3. Armenia has a temporary peace today. It is temporary because it is a weak peace without several guarantors, with weak borders and weak defenses.
As Prime Minister, I will ensure a strong and lasting peace. That peace will be based on strong diplomacy, multiple security guarantors, a strong defense with strong borders and 10,000 drones, protected skies and a modernized, professionally equipped army.
A strong peace also depends on a strong economy, with new factories, 300,000 new jobs and new opportunities for business and agriculture. In today’s world, a strong economy strengthens diplomacy and defense.
The outgoing leadership of the country is trying to convince you that this is impossible and that the only way to peace is weakness and submission to the demands of our adversaries. They are trying to assure us that if we give up our Armenian symbols, our legitimate interests, then we will have peace. This is a big lie.
Our national hero Garegin Nzhdeh used to say: “To be a coward, to remain a coward, and at the same time to dream of an independent homeland, isn’t it funny?” Isn’t it funny to be a sheep and complain about the wolf? Become a sheep, do not be surprised by the coming of the wolf. Peace and independence belong to the brave, because the brave walk in the way of God.’ Armenians keep these words in their hearts. It is sad to see that the government acts contrary to these words of Garegin Nzhdeh. They lost the peace three times and still do not want to learn from their mistakes.
I call on all Armenians not to be afraid. Don’t let the same people who have already proven themselves incapable of defending Armenia threaten you with war again.
I promise you one thing. together we will build a lasting and strong peace with an open front,” he said.
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