An unusual conversation took place between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan at the Kremlin in Moscow on April 1.
The 23-minute-long meeting was videotaped and made public, including the remarks made by both sides. Strangely, during the meeting, Pashinyan was wearing on his lapel the red-colored map of what he calls “real Armenia.” No other sensible leader would wear the map of his country on his lapel at a meeting.
Here is the most striking thing Pashinyan told Putin: “Armenia is a democratic country…. We have citizens who think that there is too much democracy in Armenia…. For example, our social networks are 100% free. There are no restrictions at all, and many citizens think that this is too much.….” Pashinyan had the audacity to present his authoritarian rule in Armenia as excessively democratic.
I am glad the video of this meeting was disclosed, so the public can know what was discussed. After the formal talks, the two leaders continued their discussions in a closed format over a working breakfast.
Pres. Putin opened the public meeting by commenting on the upcoming parliamentary elections in Armenia. He cautioned that the “domestic political processes in Armenia are gaining momentum.” However, this “escalation… must not harm our relations between Russia and Armenia in any way.”
Putin warned that “it is impossible for Armenia to be simultaneously a member of the Russia-centered Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and the European Union’s custom’s framework.” He implied that if Armenia were to pursue its economic relations with the European Union, it would no longer be able to export to EAEU countries, including Russia, billions of dollars’ worth of products, leading to the collapse of Armenia’s economy. Putin pointed out that “Armenia’s exports to EAEU countries have increased tenfold in recent years.”
In his response, Pashinyan stated that Armenia will pursue both trade channels for the time being, until it is forced to make a choice. Neither Putin nor Pashinyan had a good reason to discuss this issue now, since Armenia is decades away from qualifying to join the European Union.
In another stern message to Pashinyan, Putin reminded him that while “the price of gas in Europe is over $600 per 1,000 cubic meters, Russia sells it to Armenia for $177.5 per 1,000 cubic meters. The disparity is vast, the difference is substantial.” If Russia were to raise the gas price for Armenia, Armenia’s production of goods would come to a halt and the population would face severe hardship during winter months.
Surprisingly, Putin then brought up what he called “the most sensitive issue” — Karabagh. I am sure Pres. Aliyev was not happy that Karabagh was described as “the most sensitive issue,” since both he and Pashinyan consider the Karabagh issue closed. Putin then unnecessarily revisited Armenia’s frozen membership in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), stating that the CSTO could not intervene in the Karabagh conflict after Pashinyan in 2022 recognized it as part of Azerbaijan. What ensued is a series of erroneous claims on both sides. Putin was wrong to tie CSTO’s lack of involvement in the defense of Karabagh with Pashinyan’s surrender in 2022. In the past, when CSTO’s lack of involvement in the Karabagh war came up, Putin had correctly explained that CSTO could not defend Karabagh since it was not part of the Republic of Armenia. What Pashinyan should have asked is: why did CSTO failed to intervene when Azeri troops invaded the territory of the Republic of Armenia in 2021 and 2022, since the CSTO had a mandate to defend its member — Armenia — from attack?
Pashinyan, in his response, mistakenly blamed Russia for recognizing that Karabagh was part of Azerbaijan before he did. This cannot justify Pashinyan’s recognition of Karabagh as part of Azerbaijan, since no country in the world, including Russia, had recognized Karabagh as part of Armenia. Armenia itself had not recognized Karabagh as part of Armenia. Furthermore, why did Pashinyan base his decision on Karabagh on Russia’s position?
Putin then returned to the theme of Armenia’s upcoming elections, cautioning that the Karabagh and CSTO issues should “not become entangled in the domestic political process, especially during an election campaign.” Putin continued by reminding Pashinyan that there are over two million Armenians who live in Russia, possibly implying that if relations between the two countries sour, the large number of Armenians, who have immigrated to Russia in recent years, could be forced to return to Armenia.
Putin then made a request to Pashinyan which can be interpreted as an attempt by Russia to interfere in Armenia’s domestic politics. Here is what Putin said: “There are many political forces which have a pro-Russia orientation…. We would very much like all these political parties and political activists to be able to take part in the domestic political process during the elections [in Armenia]. Some, I know, are in prison, despite holding Russian passports. That is your decision; we are not interfering. But, we would like them to be able, at the very least, to participate in this domestic political process.”
This gave the opportunity to Pashinyan to tell Putin that Armenia’s constitution forbids candidates who are not solely Armenian citizens from running for high office in Armenia.
By lavishly praising Putin, Pashinyan’s intent may have been to convince him that he is not exclusively in the West’s camp, thus trying to reduce Russia’s antagonism toward him in the upcoming elections and minimize its support for the opposition.
I don’t know if Pashinyan managed to accomplish that objective, but after returning to Armenia he told the media that his meeting with Putin was “very successful.” However, we don’t know what he and Putin discussed during their private meal behind closed doors. Regardless, cunning alone can only take a politician so far; it cannot compensate for incompetence!
The analysis showed that Armenian letters exhibited the strongest structural similarity to Ge’ez, followed by Caucasian Albanian with moderate resemblance, while Georgian showed weaker and less consistent similarities. By contrast, the Latin alphabet demonstrated significantly lower similarity, reinforcing the distinctiveness of the observed patterns.
“Our aim was to move beyond visual impressions that are difficult to test or replicate,” said Sam Kassegne, the study’s lead investigator. “By making our criteria explicit and mathematical, we introduced an objective computational approach that is easily reproducible.”
One notable finding is that the Armenian script appears nearly as similar to Ge’ez as Ge’ez is to its own earlier forms, suggesting the resemblance may not be coincidental. Both writing systems developed around the 4th to 5th centuries AD —a period marked by documented travel between Ethiopia and parts of the Middle East, including Jerusalem, Egypt, and Syria. Historical accounts also indicate that Mesrop Mashtots, credited with creating the Armenian alphabet, traveled within the region.
“What makes the research significant is that computational geometry and historical scholarship converge on the same scripts and time period,” said Daniel Zemene, the study’s first author.
Speaking at a press conference in İstanbul’s Beyoğlu district, representatives of the station said the case should not be seen as an isolated administrative measure but as a “critical threshold” for freedom of _expression_, media freedom and the rule of law in Turkey.
“This is not only a matter concerning one institution,” they said, describing the process as a structural problem affecting all independent media outlets in the country.
In a press statement the station argued that imposing harsh sanctions over expressions that have been recognized as protected speech by both national and international court rulings creates a chilling effect on the media and restricts freedom of _expression_.
The controversy stems from a broadcast in April 2024, when a guest referred to the mass killings of Armenians during the late Ottoman period, using the term Armenian genocide.
The Armenians, supported by a majority of historians and scholars, say 1.5 million of their people died in a genocide committed by the Union and Progress government of the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Turkey acknowledges that large numbers of Armenians and Turks died in the conflict but firmly rejects the characterization of the deaths as genocide.
Following the broadcast Turkey’s media watchdog, the Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK), imposed the highest administrative fine on the station and ordered a five-day suspension of the program.
According to Açık Radyo co-founder Ömer Madra, the station later lost its license after failing to implement the suspension due to a technical issue that prevented them from viewing the dates included in the official notification.
“Despite the administrative fine being enforced and despite our request for new dates due to technical reasons regarding the suspension schedule, we were effectively silenced without even receiving a response to our petitions,” Madra said.
Madra criticized the court rulings thus far, saying the station’s legal submissions, including expert reports and precedents, were dismissed with a standard justification that RTÜK’s decision to revoke the station’s license was “in compliance with the law.”
In its legal filings the station argued that it could not be held responsible for remarks made by guests during live broadcasts without considering the overall context and intent of the program and that the sanctions imposed were disproportionate.
Lower courts rejected Açık Radyo’s appeals, and both cases were escalated to the Council of State for final review in 2026.
The station’s broadcasting license was suspended by RTÜK for five days in May on the allegation of inciting hatred. The media regulator subsequently withdrew the station’s license in July, but the radio continued to broadcast until its closure on October 16.
The station, which had been broadcasting for three decades, describes itself as a station “open to all sounds, colors and vibrations of the universe.” Its broadcasts addressed human rights, minority rights and ecological issues, among other topics.
Following the shutdown the station resumed broadcasting online under the name “Apaçık Radyo,” meaning “more open radio,” maintaining its editorial line on digital platform.
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Representatives of the station said during the press conference that despite the loss of its FM license, it continues to operate online under the Apaçık Radyo platform with an expanded team, maintaining its principles of independent broadcasting.
They also noted that the cancellation of an FM license in a metropolis like İstanbul, which faces a high earthquake risk, affects not only a media outlet but also the public’s right to access information.
Satenig Kouyoumdjian
Armenian Mirror-Spectator
YEREVAN
— Vahe Boghosian is the founder of the first multimedia project on
Sudanese-Armenian history, called sudanahye (Armenian for Sudanese Armenian),
which documents and preserves the unique history and rich culture of the Sudanese-Armenian
community. He has been touring various countries, giving lectures and
organizing exhibitions of the archival materials, starting last year in London,
Amsterdam and Berlin, and this year in the US at New Haven (Yale University),
Boston (Harvard University and several other venues), and New York City.
“I don‘t
think I have a particular skill. I only have love – love for my family, my
culture and our history,” Boghosian said in Western Armenian, whilst sitting on
the steps of the Matenadaran in Yerevan, the largest center of Armenian
manuscripts in existence.
Born and
raised in London, Boghosian got his his bachelor’s degree in history and his
MSc. in security studies. On his mother’s side he is Sudanese-Armenian.
The
majority of the Sudanese-Armenian community fled genocide from the Ottoman
Empire and resettled in Sudan, not only surviving the genocide, but preserving
their Armenian identity and creating a unique Sudanese-Armenian culture.
More
specifically, many Sudanese-Armenians are indigenous to Arabkir, a town located
near Malatya in the eastern Ottoman Empire, today’s Turkey. Arabkir was
described as “extremely culturally advanced,” and the Armenian population there
was skilled in crafts, trade and business, according to a book about the town
prepared by Antranig Poladian (1969). Fleeing the Hamidian (1894-1897) and
Adana (1909) massacres, Arabkir Armenians resettled in Sudan and helped each
other building their lives and businesses which were often connected to larger
trading networks, such as in Egypt.
Sarkis
Melikian is said to be the first Armenian in the modern period coming to Sudan,
where he arrived in the 1840s and successfully set up a trading business
between Sudan and Egypt.
An
example of a later prominent family of immigrants is the Kurkjian brothers, who
founded the Kurkjian Brothers Company which supplied the Sudanese government
with food. This company later expanded and began trading with Europe. It turned
into an infrastructure and ports company, making roads, bridges and railway
lines, according to sudanahye.com. The family was also the main sponsor which
funded the building of the Armenian Church St. Krikor Lusavorich in Khartoum
and was considered as one of the most successful families of the
Sudanese-Armenian community.
Boghosian
says that in general, Sudanese-Armenians secured themselves an enviable
economic position in Sudan, utilizing their entrepreneurial mindset to set up
businesses like the examples given above.
Overall
the modern immigration of Armenians to Sudan can be summed up as three major
waves, with the first wave being during the Turco-Egyptian rule (about
1820-1880) of Sudan. The second wave came after the Hamidian and Adana
massacres in the end of the 19th century/beginning of the 20th century and the
third wave after the Armenian Genocide starting in 1915.
“It is a
culture of a certain serenity and graciousness” is how Boghosian characterizes
the Sudanese-Armenian identity, in part “coming from the Sudanese culture,
which is perceived as very hospitable in the Arab world.”
Unlike
the big Armenian diasporan communities in Syria, Lebanon or Egypt, the Sudanese
Armenians did not have Armenian political parties, Boghosian explains. However,
that doesn’t mean that Armenian culture was less valued or passed on in the
Sudanese-Armenian community.
Crises
and Reaction
Since
2023, one of the biggest humanitarian crises in the world has been unfolding in
Sudan, with more than 150,000 victims and about 12 million people who have
become refugees seeking safety (BBC). The civil war broke out as a result of a
struggle for power between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary group Rapid
Support Forces (RSF). (See “A simple guide to what is happening in Sudan,”
Natasha Booty, Farouk Chothia, Wedaeli Chibelushi- BBC 11/13/2025.)
Unfortunately,
today the Armenian community in Sudan is almost non-existent, and the Armenian
Church has also been damaged during the war.
In this
regard, Boghosian remarked: “I don’t think any human has more of a
responsibility than others to do something. If we have a common humanity, then
we all have a shared responsibility to care about injustice everywhere. Justice
is a universal not national concept. I think as a people who have seen
Genocide, have been refugees in multiple countries, and continue to experience
injustice today we should strive to be aware of injustice, oppression and
genocides elsewhere. In those countries where we have a shared history with a
diaspora community it’s understandable we would be more in touch with current
affairs there.”
After
war broke out in Sudan, Boghosian chose not to lose hope but instead started
the sudanahye project in January 2025. It aims to preserve the
Sudanese-Armenian culture despite the events of war and destruction, but also
intends to be a means to change the narrative about Sudan, which currently
connotes war, destruction and instability.
In the
past, Sudan has served as a safe harbor for Armenians, where they were welcomed
and had the chance to build prosperous lives. Their success made them become a
people the Sudanese appreciated.
For
Boghosian, a key point is that we should not forget that we were refugees in
their countries long before they became refugees in ours. Unfolding the
successful stories of Armenians in Sudan is therefore also an attempt to give
the country a chance to break free from the shackles the narrative of war is
currently imposing.
Boghosian
is now living in Armenia. While he is researching and publishing, he also finds
himself on a path of discovering his own connection to Armenia as a
“spyurkahye” (Armenian for diasporan Armenian).
sudanahye project is supported by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. If you
are interested in the project, you can follow his journey through the Instagram
page @sudanahye or his blog http://www.sudanahye.com.
We wish to inform the faithful of our Church of certain uncanonical activities taking place in the cities of Glendale and Upland, about which concerned members of the faithful have repeatedly brought to our attention.
For some time, an entity operating at 332 N. Pacific Ave., Glendale, CA 91203, has presented itself under the name “St. Sargis Armenian Apostolic Church.” This structure has no affiliation whatsoever with the Western Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church of North America and has not been consecrated by the Primate, His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan Derderian. Furthermore, the individual presenting himself as the “spiritual pastor,” under the name “Fr. Petros Baghramyan,” is in fact a defrocked former priest. By a Pontifical decree issued by the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin on January 20, 2022, his clerical rank was formally removed. The decree explicitly states that he is to be regarded among the laity under his baptismal name, Armen Baghramyan, and from that date forward he is no longer permitted to perform any priestly functions within the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church.
The authority to ordain and depose clergy has been entrusted to the Church by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (cf. Matthew 18:18). The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles of the Apostle Paul (Acts 20:28; 1 Timothy 3:1–7; Titus 1:5–7) clearly affirm that the Apostles appointed bishops as overseers to safeguard the integrity of the faith, to preserve proper ecclesiastical order, and to protect the faithful from deception.
Regrettably, Armen Baghramyan (formerly Fr. Petros Baghramyan), in defiance of this decree, continues to present himself as a priest within the structure he established, performing such sacraments as Holy Baptism, Holy Matrimony, and the Divine Liturgy.
We have recently been presented with a document purporting to be a certificate of “Holy Baptism,” issued this year, which lacks the officiant’s signature, contains no certificate number, and bears an invalid seal. Moreover, there is no clarity regarding the source or authenticity of the Holy Chrism (Muron) used in the administration of Baptism and Chrismation, as such sacred elements are not authorized to be received outside the canonical structures of the Church.
A similar situation exists in the city of Upland, where another self-proclaimed structure operates without having been consecrated by the Primate. The individual presenting himself as “Fr. Kevork Halladjian” is not an ordained priest according to the canons of the Armenian Apostolic Church and does not possess valid priestly ordination. This entity identifies itself as “Holy Cross Armenian Apostolic Church” and is located at 196 S 3rd Ave, Upland, CA 91786.
It is with deep concern that we note many sincere and God-fearing faithful, unaware of these facts, have participated in these purported “sacraments.” Upon learning the truth, some have expressed distress and have turned to the Diocesan Office for guidance.
For this reason, we urge all faithful to remain vigilant and to verify, through the Diocesan Office, the canonical status of any church or clergyman, in order to avoid falling victim to self-proclaimed or defrocked individuals and the danger of spiritual deception.
We also call upon those who may have unknowingly received baptism or been married within the above-mentioned structures to contact the Diocesan Office for proper pastoral guidance and assistance.
*****************************************************************************************************6– Israel settlers attack Armenian restaurant in Jerusalem
Armenian Church-owned property in Jerusalem’s Armenian Quarter has been desecrated with rainbow-colored banners reading “Armenian Church Night Clubs & Bars,” sparking outrage from the local Armenian Christian community. The image, showing the signage draped across a balcony and misappropriating church identity, was shared by Jerusalemite-Armenian Kegham Balian on X.
The banners welcome visitors to “Armenian Church Night Clubs & Bars” in Jerusalem’s city center, falsely implying church endorsement of nightlife establishments. Some signs even include the wording “Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem,” raising concerns over reputational harm and blatant disrespect toward sacred institutions.
The tenant responsible for this signage is occupying property owned by the Armenian Church. The use of church-owned space in this manner has been labeled by members of the community as a direct desecration of Armenian Christian heritage and a mockery of the Church’s identity in the Holy City.
“Desecration of Armenian property in Jerusalem: A tenant of the Armenian Patriarchate has turned Church-owned property into ‘Armenian Church Night Clubs & Bars.’ Unacceptable! This is a grave insult to our faith and heritage, and it demands accountability. Now!” — Kegham Balian, on X
As earlier reported in July, an Israeli watchdog revealed that 50% of hate crimes in Jerusalem’s Old City targeted Armenian Christians, amid an alarming spike in attacks. Between April and June 2025, the Religious Freedom Data Center documented 50 such incidents, with half occurring in the Armenian Quarter and many taking place at the Armenian Patriarchate itself. The attacks included spitting, verbal abuse, vandalism, and desecration of holy sites. Despite 22 police reports, only 2 cases have led to prosecution, raising serious concerns about accountability and protection for Christian communities.
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