The Public Tribunal has written many times that the new geopolitical realities emerging in the South Caucasus pose serious challenges for Armenia. Moreover, it is not only about Baku’s demands or the so-called “peace agenda”. We are talking about much deeper processes in which regional and superpower interests are involved.

Today it is already obvious that Syunik has become one of the key points of the conflict of these interests. Transport communications, corridors, extraterritorial regimes, new security architecture – all these concepts have long gone beyond the scope of mere diplomatic vocabulary and have become instruments of political pressure.

Against this background, Nikol Pashinyan’s decision to spend his vacation in Syunik and climb Khustup was remarkable.

For Armenians, Khustup is not just a mountain. It is a peak whose name is inextricably intertwined with Garegin Nzhdeh, the defense of Syunik, heroic resistance and national dignity. This is the shrine where rests the remains of a man who, at a crucial moment in history, was able to do what seems almost impossible today: to defend his native land against the superior forces of the enemy and the indifference of the outside world.

And Nikol Pashinyan is climbing that mountain.

That step itself could be perceived as a tribute to the memory of a great national figure. If there were no significant circumstances. There is a gulf between Nzhdeh and Pashinyan, which is measured not only by the difference in their political views, but also by the historical consequences of their activities. One remained in history as a defender of Armenian lands. The other as a leader, as a result of whose conscious and purposeful actions, Armenia lost Artsakh.

In politics, especially when it comes to Nikol Pashinyan, often not only the action is important, but also the context in which it takes place. Perhaps that is why the footage from Khustup leaves such a heavy impression. They remind not of the continuation of the Nzhdeh case, but of its rejection.

What’s more, we have enough reasons to treat such symbolic steps with particular caution. In the spring and summer of 2020, Pashinyan and his wife visited Artsakh with the same showiness. Photos were published, declarations of confidence and victory were made, the impression was created that the situation was completely under control. However, just a few months later, the 44-day war began, the consequences of which continue to weigh on Armenia to this day. And three years later, Artsakh was depopulated.

Of course, it is not about mysticism or superstition. History is made by decisions, not symbols. But sometimes symbols start to live a life of their own. Especially when they are followed by events that change the fate of the entire nation.

It is enough to remember the famous photo published by Anna Hakobyan on social networks in July 2023, with a cover with the inscription “A refugee brings with him not only a bundle of things to a new country”. . Two months later, as a result of the ethnic cleansing of Artsakh, tens of thousands of Armenians became refugees.

And here today, in the summer of 2026, when Syunik has once again appeared at the center of international discussions and regional calculations, the Prime Minister of Armenia climbs Khustup, the mountain of Nzhdeh.

I repeat, no one seriously claims that history is governed by signs or coincidences. However, it is equally difficult to ignore the fact that during the last eight years, too many symbolic episodes later received a completely different, often tragic, meaning.

That is why today we look at the photos taken from Khustup with concern. Because Garegin Nzhdeh went up to Syunik to protect him. And Nikol Pashinyan ascends to Khustup at a time when the fate of Syunik has again become the subject of geopolitical negotiations.

God forbid that this comparison will never be justified.

But let’s be honest before the same God. Eight years ago, few would have believed that Armenia would lose Artsakh. Five years ago, few would have believed that tens of thousands of Artsakh Armenians would become refugees. And if those seemingly unbelievable events are already history today, then no one has the right to say that the concerns about Syunik are exaggerated.

Nothing can be ruled out.

Armenian Public Tribunal

—