Author: Emil Lazarian

“I should like to see any power of the world destroy this race, this small tribe of unimportant people, whose wars have all been fought and lost, whose structures have crumbled, literature is unread, music is unheard, and prayers are no more answered. Go ahead, destroy Armenia . See if you can do it. Send them into the desert without bread or water. Burn their homes and churches. Then see if they will not laugh, sing and pray again. For when two of them meet anywhere in the world, see if they will not create a New Armenia.” - WS

Armenia will modernize the state procurement system. minister

Emil Lazarian
Photo: parliament.am

Against the backdrop of impressive economic growth in 2025, Armenia is preparing for a large-scale digital transformation. The outdated public procurement system will finally be a thing of the past, giving way to an innovative platform developed by the global IT giant, which is scheduled to launch in early 2027.


RA Finance Minister Vahe Hovhannisyan announced the expected fundamental changes on March 23 at the session of the National Assembly’s Committee on Financial Credit and Budgetary Issues. Presenting the 2021-2025 performance of the government program, the head of the department noted that the existing electronic platform for public procurement is hopelessly outdated and no longer meets the growing volumes of public expenditures and the pace of reforms. In order to solve this problem, the government has already held an international competition and signed a contract with a world-renowned technology company specializing in similar solutions.


Now the parties are discussing in detail the road map for the introduction of the new system, which will provide ample opportunities for in-depth analyzes and increasing the transparency of processes.


Despite the ambitious plans, the minister acknowledged the fact that there are some obstacles on the way to full digitization. In particular, some communities still prefer paper document circulation, but the government intends to complete the complete transition to electronic format already this year. Another acute problem remains the shortage of qualified professionals in the field of procurement.


For the comprehensive solution of these issues, the executive will present a large package of legislative initiatives next week, which is intended to prepare the ground for the full launch of the new platform from January 1, 2027.


The need for infrastructure modernization is directly dictated by the rapid growth of the country’s economy. According to the published data of 2025, the GDP per capita in Armenia reached 9,474 dollars, increasing by 10.7% in one year in dollar terms, and almost 2.5 times compared to 2017.


With economic growth of 7.2% recorded last year, the five-year average annual index was an impressive 7.9%.


The economic rise was logically reflected on the state treasury. In 2025, budget revenues exceeded 2.88 trillion drams, registering an increase of almost 12%. Due to this, the government managed not only to exceed the tax collection plan, but also to direct record funds to the development of the country. The capital expenditures of the budget increased by 26%, exceeding 702 billion drams.


At the same time, investments in economic and social sectors, including subsidies to communities, increased by almost a third compared to the previous year, exceeding 2018 indicators by 3.5 times.

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It has nothing to do with reality. Iveta Tonoyan denies

Emil Lazarian

Iveta Tonoyan referred to the publication entitled “Gagik Tsarukyan and Mihran Poghosyan were unable to come to an end”, describing it as having nothing to do with reality.


He noted that this is one of the rare cases that there is no truthful or factual information in the complete material. Also, to describe as surprising the fact that the journalist, who considers himself a professional, “tried to turn a simple gossip into a highly reliable and unquestionable truth”.


“It is doubly regrettable that the latter did not even make the slightest attempt to verify this “information”, which he always had the opportunity to do and had in this case as well.


I assure all my colleagues in the media that I am always ready to provide exhaustive and accurate information in order to avoid publications of such quality in the future,” Iveta Tonoyan wrote.

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Why Is Transitional Justice Delayed? Processes in Armenia from 2018 to the Pre

Emil Lazarian

· MARCH 23, 2026


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168: 10,000 drams to the pensioner, 20,000 dollars to the minister. Pashinyan’s government

Emil Lazarian

March: 23, 2026

$21.5 million to teammates for loyalty

After there was a great uproar and a wave of complaints among the public regarding the millions of drams distributed to government officials at the end of last year, the authorities decided to increase the pensions by several thousand drams before the elections to show that they do not forget the pensioners. They increased their pensions by 10,000 drams in order to give them millions more in bonuses.

It is not surprising that this time the appetite of the officials has increased.

Burying the state under debts of billions of dollars, the government has decided to give 4.6 billion drams or 12 million dollars to encourage state officials based on the performance of the second half of last year.

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Let’s remind that in the case of the performance of the first semester, they were relatively more modest: they allocated 3.6 billion drams or about 9.5 million dollars. Within that amount, there were ministers who received up to 7-8 million drams or more than 20 thousand dollars. They will probably get just as much, if not more, this time. And it will turn out that in addition to high ministerial salaries and monthly bonuses, they will receive additional bonuses of the order of 40,000 dollars per year, at the expense of taxes paid by taxpayers.

They increased their pension by 10,000 drams to justify their 15-16 million bonuses. There is no question, the state’s money is very “fairly” divided. Only their bonuses will exceed today’s average pension by 300 times, and the minimum wage by 200 times.

Well, let the pensioners, the working poor, who sometimes receive wages below the minimum, get by with their several thousand drams in pensions and wages in the conditions of these widespread price increases.

Last time, Nikol Pashinyan rewarded himself with 12 million drams, which was equivalent to more than 30 thousand dollars. Most likely, he will reward him this time, probably because he closed the page of Artsakh forever, and put Armenia under the feet of Azerbaijanis and Turks.

The bonuses given for the performance of the first semester were considered too small and this time they increased by 1 billion drams.

In this way, the annual fund of officials’ incentives was increased to 8.2 billion drams. 21.5 million dollars will be paid from the state budget and taxes paid by taxpayers so that they feel good.

No matter how hard they try to present it differently, it is not difficult to understand that this is another pre-election bribe given to state officials and state system employees before the elections. Especially since it is not known for which good work they are being rewarded. There is no report or justification.

The “transparent and accountable government” does not consider it necessary to give an explanation about this, as Nikol Pashinyan says to his employer. With the employer’s money, they voluntarily distribute bonuses to themselves. And the justification presented by Tigran Khachatran, who held high positions during the previous government, then smoothly came under Nikol Pashinyan’s wing and received his share of those billions as the deputy prime minister, is that the work done by state bodies was close to the highest level.

It is not known who or how they decided this. They evaluated themselves and considered that they deserve to receive millions of bonuses. No matter that hundreds and thousands of citizens live in poverty today and cannot meet their minimum needs.

At one time, they announced that they were ready to work even without a salary for the sake of the people’s well-being, even today they are not satisfied with the high salaries and bonuses they receive. At the same time, they will receive millions of incentives.

This is a mockery for a country with almost 40 percent poverty.

For this reason, they increased their pension by 10,000 drams in order to justify the millions distributed to them at the expense of the state budget. All this cannot be called anything other than looting and embezzlement of state budget funds. The former were accused of embezzling state funds, they are engaged in open embezzlement. The state money is emptying their own pockets, dividing their teammates, carefully placed in-laws-acquaintances-friends in the state system, all those who have to go to the polling stations tomorrow and to be grateful, choose their cheerleaders.

It is clear that the distribution of 21.5 million dollars to government officials has nothing to do with the work done. Otherwise, many would not even receive a salary, let alone be rewarded. All this is pre-election bribery, which is handed out to state officials by the government’s decision and without parliament’s approval.

In the state administration apparatus and institutions, in the form of incentives, they distribute bribes, it is not enough, and they promise to distribute them to the local self-government bodies after the elections.

“We have to solve the salary problem at the local government level as well, because this is about the state and the community, we cannot tolerate this situation,” says Nikol Pashinyan in order to woo local government workers.

For so many years, he did not think about the salary of local government employees, he suddenly remembered before the elections. And in order to give all that a solid look, Minister of Territorial Administration Davit Khudatyan is in a hurry to announce that the works in this direction are in the finalization stage, and the model will be presented in the near future.

Before the elections, this is how they try to solve the issue of reproduction of the government at the expense of the budget, by bribing and making promises.

HAKOB KOCHARYAN



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The Archbishop has been in prison for about 9 months, and the case against him

Emil Lazarian
Aysor, Armenia
Mar 23 2026

“I met with the leader of the ‘Holy Movement,’ Bagrat Galstanyan, at the Yerevan-Kentron Penitentiary,” wrote MP Tigran Abrahamyan.

“The Archbishop has been in prison for about nine months, and the case against him and the movement’s activists has long since collapsed. It could not have been otherwise. From the very beginning, the case was built on forgeries, slander, and political dictation. It has no prospects and cannot have any.

Freedom for Archbishop Bagrat and all those subjected to political persecution.”

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‘Stigmatising refugees is unacceptable’: Pashinyan refers to Karabakh Armenian

Emil Lazarian
JAM News
Mar 23 2026
  • JAMnews
  • Yerevan

The incident, which took place in the metro and involved Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and a Karabakh Armenian woman with a child, has sparked debate among experts and the wider Armenian public. The exchange escalated into a heated argument, during which Pashinyan said: “Do not dare, you fleeing people, to claim that I surrendered Karabakh.”

Shortly afterwards, Human Rights Defender Anahit Manasyan called on senior officials to show sensitivity towards refugees and respect their rights. However, her statement did not mention the prime minister or the specific incident.

Some political analysts said the prime minister was legitimising negative rhetoric towards refugees and stigmatising them for political purposes.

Following the incident, Pashinyan publicly apologised to the woman twice and offered to meet her again. However, discussions on social media continued even after his apology. Political commentator Hakob Badalyan described the proposal for a new meeting as a political tactic.

“If the woman accepts the offer to meet, the propaganda machine will naturally start working in Pashinyan’s favour. If she declines, it will give the propaganda apparatus a ‘legitimate pretext’ for a new wave of attacks, claiming that Pashinyan apologised while the woman acted rudely,” he said.

Full details of the incident, the prime minister’s apology, the ombudsman’s statement, and reactions.

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The argument began when Pashinyan offered to give the child a pin badge featuring a map of Armenia.

For several weeks, the prime minister and his team have been travelling to different regions at weekends, holding what they describe as an “intra-party campaign”. This Sunday, they took to the metro and spoke with residents of the capital.

In recent weeks, Pashinyan has been wearing a badge depicting the map of Armenia and handing out similar ones to passers-by. He offered one to the boy in the metro, but his mother replied:

“We are from Artsakh. We have a different map,” she said, referring to a version that includes the unrecognised Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.

The prime minister insisted: “Your son will live within the borders shown on this map.”

The woman objected: “You cannot forbid us from hoping to return to Artsakh.”

Pashinyan then raised his voice and responded:

“We spent billions earned by the citizens of Armenia so that you could remain there. Why did you not stay? […]

Do not speak so dismissively about this map. Next time, you fleeing people, do not dare to claim that I surrendered Karabakh.”

Pashinyan admitted he had ‘said something wrong’

The same day, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan issued an apology — twice.

“I admit that I said something wrong. I spoke in the wrong tone, and my facial _expression_ was inappropriate. In some sense, I also expressed the wrong message. But this remains one of the most emotional issues for me. I apologise to everyone,” he said.

Later, Pashinyan commented on the incident in a post on his Facebook page, inviting Armine Mosiyan and her son to the government building. He said he was ready to apologise to her publicly, live on air.

“If visiting the government is not acceptable for her, I am ready to do the same in the metro at a time convenient for her — again live. I am also ready to meet at her place of residence or work.”

Ombudsman’s statement

“Communication with forcibly displaced persons and refugees, as well as discussions concerning their rights, must be conducted with due sensitivity, taking into account the vulnerability of this group,” the Human Rights Defender said.

Anahit Manasyan added that this is required by international legal standards. She called on “public officials, as well as all political and public figures” to demonstrate sensitivity towards displaced persons and refugees and issues related to their rights.

“It is necessary to ensure that public discourse does not trigger or exacerbate their vulnerability, but instead contributes to fostering and strengthening an atmosphere of solidarity, inclusiveness and mutual respect.”

Commentaries

Nikol Pashinyan was criticised not only for stigmatising Karabakh refugees. Public reaction was also triggered by the fact that he raised his voice at a mother in the presence of a minor. Political analysts also began discussing the possible impact of the incident on the outcome of the parliamentary elections scheduled for June.

Below are some of the views most widely discussed on social media.

Political analyst Tigran Grigoryan said:

“I believe that analysing such behaviour requires the involvement of an interdisciplinary group of professionals. For our part, we can note the following:

  • As expected, the number of attacks on refugees at the highest level will sharply increase during the pre-election period.
  • Such behaviour will significantly intensify hate rhetoric against refugees at the everyday level.

If the country’s prime minister legitimises and uses the most offensive language towards refugees for political purposes, why would his supporters not repeat it?”»

Human rights defender Zarui Hovhannisyan pointed to another aspect:

“When a woman’s voice is effectively drowned out by a man’s voice, aggressive gestures and accusations, this constitutes psychological pressure. When it comes from a public official who sets an example for thousands of people, it becomes an even more dangerous precedent. It is doubly unacceptable when a mother is shouted at in the presence of her child.

The child, who was simply sitting next to his mother, became a witness to aggressive behaviour by a representative of the authorities. This goes beyond a political or personal dispute and enters the sphere of children’s rights.

A safe environment for a child implies not only physical but also psychological protection. When a mother is shouted at in his presence, creating a tense and frightening situation, it violates the child’s fundamental right to protection from violence and degrading treatment.

As someone working in the field of women’s rights, I assess such behaviour as a case containing elements of gender-based psychological violence. At the same time, the presence of a child requires an assessment from the perspective of child protection.

Holding public office does not grant the right to shout, accuse or humiliate — especially those who have already suffered the severe consequences of war and forced displacement.”

Political analyst Robert Gevondyan said:

“The likelihood of the ruling party securing a constitutional majority (two-thirds) in the elections is крайне low. The most probable scenario is a victory for Civil Contract and the formation of a government, but with a narrow margin.

In essence, Pashinyan is signalling that the party will achieve a constitutional majority in an attempt to influence the political atmosphere and offset situations that have generated public backlash and negatively affected ratings. These primarily include the dismissal of the director of the Genocide Museum and the incident in the metro. In both cases, the problems could have been avoided if Pashinyan had restrained his emotions and resisted the urge to comment and engage in confrontation.

There is also worse news — there are still two and a half months until the elections. Both orchestrated provocations and similar spontaneous incidents are likely to increase, and there will be little opportunity to prevent them.

Therefore, if Pashinyan fails to control his emotions and remain silent in certain situations, he may not only fall short of securing a constitutional majority, but could even create an opening for Armenia to turn into a Russian “colony” under the Karapetyan–Kocharyan tandem,” he said, referring to Russian businessman Samvel Karapetyan and former president Robert Kocharyan.

“I think that, for the sake of the Republic of Armenia, it is sometimes better to remain silent.”

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The public atmosphere of this spring will determine Armenia’s perspective. Vahe Hovhannisy

Emil Lazarian

March: 22, 2026

The public atmosphere of this spring will determine Armenia’s perspective. Vahe Hovhannisyan, a member of the “Alternative projects” group, wrote about this.

“If the investigator can ban the departure of the Catholicos of All Armenians from Armenia and his visit to Georgia, and the Armenian society is not upset by it, then something very important is wrong with us. We all understand that the decision-maker is not the investigator, but that is not the point. If the opposition political forces conducting an election campaign do not see in the ugliness of Vehapar a united revolt, a pressing problem of sending a united message to the people, a demand for a united reaction, then what is the value of that election campaign? If the intellectual circles of the country do not revolt, then what is it about? If the atmosphere in the country is like this 2.5 months before the elections, what kind of perception and impact should our best, competently prepared programs have? The government creates a new ugly reality every day, and the opposing political systems are always one day behind.

With such logic, we will realize what is happening after the known date. In such conditions, the society will understand what they are warning about today only in the fall. In the spring-summer phase of 2020, there were at most 15-20 people in public life who warned about the inevitable war. Everyone already knows what happened that fall, but they didn’t learn a lesson. No consequences. Now there is an acute problem: to change today’s indifferent atmosphere. The public atmosphere of April-May will determine the long-term perspective of Armenia.

Developing and presenting programs is very important, but what is crucial is the public atmosphere in which these programs are presented. And today’s atmosphere in Armenia depicts an unclear, uncertain perspective for Armenia. Let’s change the atmosphere, involve new layers in this work, get out of team or personal egocentrism, and the atmosphere will change, bringing with it success,” he wrote.

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A WOMAN FROM TARSAKHTS SLAMMED PASHINIAN IN THE METRO. HE CAME OUT OF HUN AND ATTACKED

Emil Lazarian

March: 22, 2026

Your son will live in this map, take that into account. Nikol Pashinyan said this while arguing with a woman from Artsakh in the subway, showing the RA map brooch.

In response, Pashinyan’s wife from Artsakh said, “You will not let us live in our Artsakh?” You cannot deprive us of our hope to live in Artsakh”

“We have done everything for you to live in Artsakh, Karabakh.

In 2023, it was you who accused me of closing the borders so that the people would not come to Armenia. And you demanded me to open the borders and said that it was specially closed so that the people from Karabakh would not come, now you have come here, you say, wow, we want to return. We spent the billions earned by the citizens of Armenia so that you could stay there, why didn’t you stay? Next time, don’t try to say that I gave away Karabakh with the fugitives,” Pashinyan said.

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RFE/RL – Ombudsperson Urges Restraint After Pashinian’s Argument With Displace

Emil Lazarian
March 22, 2026


Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian argues with a displaced woman from Nagorno-Karabakh in the Yerevan metro, March 22, 2026.

Armenia’s human rights ombudsperson has called on officials to exercise restraint in public discourse after Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian had a heated exchange with a woman displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh during a campaign event on Sunday.

The incident took place as Pashinian, accompanied by bodyguards and political allies, rode the metro in Yerevan as part of his weekly pre-election outreach. He engaged in a conversation with a young woman traveling with her son, both among more than 100,000 ethnic Armenians who fled to Armenia in 2023 following Azerbaijan’s military recapture of Nagorno-Karabakh.

The conversation escalated into an argument after the woman refused to accept a pin badge offered by Pashinian depicting Armenia without Nagorno-Karabakh. The refusal drew an angry response from the prime minister, who has repeatedly stated that the movement for the region’s self-determination, which began in 1988, has ended and that Armenians should no longer consider returning to homes in what is now an Azerbaijani-administered region.

At one point, Pashinian raised his voice, calling Karabakh Armenians “runaways” and saying that they should not accuse him of “giving away” the region.

The dispute comes ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled for June, in which Pashinian and his ruling Civil Contract party are seeking reelection on a platform that includes making peace in the region “irreversible.”

More than 200 Karabakh Armenian servicemen were killed and hundreds more wounded during brief hostilities with Azerbaijan on September 19-20, 2023 which ended with the de facto leadership of the region agreeing to disband its unrecognized government. At least 218 Karabakh Armenians were killed and 120 injured in a fuel depot explosion near Stepanakert amid a mass exodus that followed.

The Armenian government, also drawing on international funding, has allocated tens of millions of dollars in aid to displaced Karabakh Armenians, including temporary housing, monthly allowances, and subsidized housing programs. However, many have described the assistance as insufficient.

After Pashinian’s remarks, which sounded disparaging toward Karabakh Armenians, Ombudswoman Anahit Manasian urged officials and public figures to show sensitivity when addressing issues affecting displaced persons and refugees.

“Communication with forcibly displaced persons and refugees, as well as discussions concerning their rights, must be conducted with appropriate restraint, taking into account the vulnerability of these groups,” Manasian said, adding that such an approach is required by international legal standards.

Noting that “political rhetoric often intensifies during election periods, sometimes resulting in insensitive attitudes toward vulnerable groups,” she called on officials and society to ensure public discourse fosters “solidarity, inclusiveness, and mutual respect.”

Pashinian’s political opponents also criticized his remarks, describing his tone toward the woman as inappropriate.

Later, while still on the campaign trail, when asked by a reporter about his “runaways” remark regarding Karabakh Armenians, Pashinian said he did not recall making such a statement but added that he would apologize if he had made it.

The prime minister subsequently offered a direct apology to the woman, her son, and to “everyone,” acknowledging that some of his remarks were inappropriate and resulted from “heightened emotion.”

“From certain comments and criticisms by our colleagues, I understood that not everything in what I said was as perhaps it should have been. I apologize to you and your son for those emotions, and I hope that we will have a chance to meet in the metro or somewhere else and talk calmly,” Pashinian said. “I apologize again and admit that some of what I said wasn’t said properly, with the proper gesturing, tone and facial _expression_, and in some of it I didn’t treat the content correctly, but this topic is still one of the most emotional topics for me, and I apologize to everyone.”

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Armenian Patriarchate Debunks Rumors: Church of the Holy Sepulchre Rites Conti

Emil Lazarian
Mar 22 2026
Armenian Patriarchate Debunks Rumors: Church of the Holy Sepulchre Rites Continue Amid War Closure
by Bill Giannopoulos

Jerusalem, March 23, 2026 – The Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem has issued an official communiqué debunking widespread online rumors claiming the complete closure of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the cessation of all sacred rites, including those at the Tomb of Christ.

In a statement dated March 22, 2026, the Patriarchate emphasized that all Divine Liturgies, processions, and other assigned services under the historic Status Quo agreement have continued without interruption since the onset of the current regional conflict. The only adjustments involve certain Lenten observances, which have been performed with a limited group of monks and without full public solemnity due to ongoing security concerns from the war.

The communiqué addresses “false rumors circulating online” about a total shutdown, clarifying that while the church has been closed to the general public since late February amid escalated hostilities—including missile threats and debris impacts near holy sites—the Armenian community’s specific liturgical rights have proceeded as assigned.

Church leaders from the three main custodians (Greek Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic, and Roman Catholic/Franciscan) remain in close contact with each other and relevant authorities to finalize arrangements for Holy Week, which begins March 29. No definitive schedule has been set yet due to the fluid security situation, but updates will be shared promptly once confirmed.

The Patriarchate reaffirmed its unbroken Christian presence in the Holy Land since the 4th century and called for peace amid the challenges afflicting the region.

This statement comes as broader reports confirm the church’s public closure—ordered by Israeli authorities for safety reasons following attacks involving Iran—has disrupted typical pilgrim access and large gatherings during Lent. Some sources describe the situation as unprecedented in recent history, with negotiations underway for limited clergy-only services during Easter observances, similar to COVID-era restrictions.

The Armenian Patriarchate’s release serves as a direct counter to misinformation exaggerating the impact on Armenian rites specifically, while acknowledging the broader war-related disruptions affecting the shared holy site. Prayers for tranquility in the Holy Land were reiterated in the communiqué.

https://greekcitytimes.com/2026/03/23/armenian-patriarchate-debunks-holy-sepulchre-closure-rumors-2026/





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