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

Indian Students Returning From Iran Hit Roadblock As Azerbaijan Denies Entry

Emil Lazarian
India – Mar 17 2026

Dr Momin Khan, president All India Medical Students Association said that the evacuated students were not allowed to cross the border.

By Moazum Mohammad

Published : March 17, 2026 at 6:40 PM IST

Srinagar: With the first few batches of Indian students returning home from war-torn Iran due to safety concerns, the repatriation of students via Azerbaijan is in limbo after Baku closed the border crossing.

This has left over 200 students from Iran University of Medical Sciences, Islamic Azad University and Tehran University of Medical Sciences stranded at the Astara land border checkpoint at the Iran border.

Since last week, the students were transported by bus to the Azerbaijan and Armenia borders to exit Iran due to safety concerns, as Israel and the US have pounded the country with aerial strikes since February 28.

“But now, students are not allowed to cross the border,” said Dr Momin Khan, president All India Medical Students Association (AIMA), which alongside Jammu and Students Association (JKSA) is coordinating and overseeing the repatriation of students with Indian authorities.

“The Indian embassy instructed students to book tickets and visas from Azerbaijan to India. However, Azerbaijan border authorities are seeking some exit code from students at the checkpoint. We have taken up the issue with external affairs but there appears to be a lack of coordination between the Indian embassy and Azerbaijan,” he said.

Since last week, according to the ministry of external affairs, around 640 Indian nationals have exited Iran via Armenia and Azerbaijan. Unlike previous Operation Sindhu last year when India evacuated its citizens from Iran during a 12-day war, this time it facilitated bus travel for students to the borders so they could fly their citizens out at their own expense.

India’s External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that 90 Indian nationals were facilitated by the Indian embassy in Iran to cross over to Azerbaijan.

However, students who reached the border from Urmia Medical University said the border has been effectively closed since the initial batches crossed.

“Many have missed their scheduled flights since March 15 because border authorities are seeking a 16-digit exit code at the border,”said the student. “But we lack it and have been seeking help from the Indian Embassy.”

Back home, many parents in Srinagar are worried as their children studying MBBS missed their flights home.

“This situation has increased the worries of our children,” said Naseema Bano. “My daughter and her fellow students have been waiting at the border since March 13. The tickets and visa cost us about Rs 60000 but now these tickets stand cancelled. We will be unable to afford them again,” she said, requesting the Indian Embassy to take up the matter with their counterparts in Azerbaijan for smooth facilitation of their wards.

Another mother Asifa is worried her son who is a fifth-year student at IUMS will face the same trouble as his ticket is scheduled for March 18.

“They should have crossed the border today to reach hotels and catch their flight scheduled for 9 pm tomorrow for New Delhi. But they lack a code which has to be given by the Indian embassy to enter Azerbaijan,” she has told ETV Bharat. “Many students are sick as it is cold there. Also some are facing panic attacks. We request authorities to help us in bringing back our children.”

According to Asifa, this is the second time she had to face cancellation of tickets since the war began last month.

“I booked tickets costing Rs 60,000 from Tehran to New Delhi on March 5. But that was cancelled as the airspace was closed. This time, the ticket and visa cost another 60,000. We followed the instructions passed by the ministry of external affairs by booking tickets and visa,” she said, seeking answers for their fault.

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Robert Kocharyan named prime minister candidate: will he become represent oppo

Emil Lazarian
JAM News
Mar 17 2026

Former Armenian president Robert Kocharyan will run as a candidate for prime minister from the Armenia bloc in the parliamentary elections scheduled for June.

At the end of January, Kocharyan said no one could “lead the country out of this situation” better than him. At that time, however, he did not say that he himself would be the candidate for prime minister.

“We will conduct a sociological survey and decide who will lead the bloc. If the poll shows that it is me, I will take the lead. If it is someone else, then they will lead. I will be very glad if it is not me. A great burden will fall from my shoulders,” he said.

At a ceremony held the day before in Yerevan, organisers confirmed that Kocharyan will take part in the elections together with the ARF Dashnaktsutyun party and the Forward party as part of the bloc.

Experts now say Kocharyan and his bloc risk failing to enter parliament. Armenian political analysts point out that electoral blocs must clear an 8% threshold. They say this will be a difficult task for a force led by the former president.

Below, we look at which political forces plan to take part in the elections, whom they have named as prime ministerial candidates, who could become the “face” of the opposition, and what experts and social media users say.

  • Poll: Will Armenia’s ruling party win June election?
  • Pension rise in Armenia: economic growth or voter handout?
  • ‘Kocharyan’s views are hopelessly outdated,’ – Pashinyan in response to ex-president’s remarks

Political forces taking part in the elections and their candidates for prime minister

Here is a list of political forces that have announced they will take part in the parliamentary elections:

  • The ruling Civil Contract party (prime ministerial candidate — Nikol Pashinyan)
  • Strong Armenia (prime ministerial candidate — businessman Samvel Karapetyan, who is under house arrest on charges of calling for a seizure of power)
  • Prosperous Armenia (has not yet named a prime ministerial candidate; party leader, businessman Gagik Tsarukyan, says he does not seek the post)
  • Armenian National Congress (prime ministerial candidate — Levon Zurabyan)
  • Republic (prime ministerial candidate — former prime minister Aram Sargsyan)
  • Wings of Unity political initiative (prime ministerial candidate — former ombudsman Arman Tatoyan)
  • DOK party (prime ministerial candidate — blogger Vardan Ghukasyan, who is in a US prison)
  • “I Am Against All” movement (has not yet announced its prime ministerial candidate)

The Republican Party of Armenia, led by former president Serzh Sargsyan, has not yet decided whether to take part in the elections. The Homeland party, led by former National Security Service chief Artur Vanetsyan, initially announced it would participate. However, in late February, it decided not to run. Vanetsyan called on his supporters to vote for “any genuinely opposition force.”

Ruling party suggests opposition is betting on Kocharyan

Representatives of the ruling party highlight shifts within the opposition camp ahead of the elections. They point out that some members of former president Robert Kocharyan’s team have joined the Strong Armenia party, led by Russian businessman Samvel Karapetyan. They believe the new party aims to help Kocharyan become prime minister.

Samvel Karapetyan himself cannot run for the post. Armenia’s constitution does not allow it, as he holds citizenship of Armenia, Russia and Cyprus.

His nephew, Narek Karapetyan, a member of the party’s political council, gave an evasive response when local media asked about possible cooperation with Kocharyan’s bloc. He said he had never met Robert Kocharyan.

“According to all polls, Strong Armenia, Samvel Karapetyan’s party, is the leading opposition force,” Narek Karapetyan said.

He added that Samvel Karapetyan would go all the way, overcome poverty and ensure security in the country.

“Having started this process in Armenia and spent seven months in an NSS detention centre, he will see it through and personally deliver these changes.”

Robert Kocharyan: “Our goal is victory”

Kocharyan delivered a keynote speech to his supporters. Organisers invited him onto the stage as “the first president of the Republic of Artsakh [the former unrecognised NKR] and the second president of the Republic of Armenia”.

When he reached the podium, he stressed that becoming a candidate for prime minister was “not a promotion, but a step down” for him, but said he was ready to do anything for the sake of the country.

“We are determined, our goal is victory. I am sure that the evil represented by this government will be defeated. I have fought them since their first day in power and will not rest until they are gone,” he said.

Kocharyan said one of Armenia’s main tasks in the coming years is to ensure security. He added that this requires “a combat-ready army, a strong leader and a powerful ally”. Kocharyan has long held pro-Russian views, so his remark likely referred to Russia.

On the peace process with Azerbaijan, he said he supports peace but only with “real security guarantees.”

Expert opinion

Political analyst Robert Ghevondyan commented on the chances of Kocharyan’s Armenia bloc entering parliament:

“In fact, there was some intrigue over whether Kocharyan would run as part of a bloc or lead the list of the Dashnaktsutyun party to try to pass the electoral threshold.

By choosing to lead the Armenia bloc, Kocharyan is taking a risk. He needs to secure 8%, which is quite a difficult task. Samvel Karapetyan’s force has taken a large share of the votes that Kocharyan received in the 2021 elections.

If he gains 6–7% and finishes third, he still will not enter parliament under the current law. Prosperous Armenia, led by Gagik Tsarukyan, would become the third force to pass the threshold after securing more than 4%.

In essence, Kocharyan has to take this risk if he wants Russian circles, which brought Samvel Karapetyan into Armenian politics, to continue seeing him as an important figure. […]

The forecast looks like this:

  • First place will go to the ruling Civil Contract party, which will most likely form the government.
  • Second place will go to Strong Armenia, which could win 20–30% of the vote.
  • Third place will go to the Armenia bloc, with 6–8%. Whether it enters parliament will depend on whether it reaches the 8% threshold.
  • Fourth place will go to Prosperous Armenia, which could win 5–7% and enter parliament, as it is a party rather than a bloc. [The threshold for parties is 4%.]

Other political forces have much lower chances of passing the threshold.”

Social media reactions

Users in the Armenian segment of social media are actively discussing the decision by the Armenia bloc to nominate Robert Kocharyan as its candidate for prime minister. Most reactions are critical.

Here are some of the comments:

“I don’t want to burn in that fire a second time.”

“Congratulations, and I wish you victory in the elections, Robert Kocharyan.”

“Hey, mothball-smelling relic, don’t you realise there is no way back, even if you tear yourself apart?”

“Most people clearly understand who your candidate is — the governor of your hearts and of Russia. He will never become the prime minister of Armenian hearts.”

“It’s like in fairy tales: you cut off a dragon’s heads, and they grow back again.”

“This man lost Artsakh, his ancestral home and family grave. If he does not fight for Artsakh, then who will?”

“Change the name of the bloc. What does it have to do with Armenia?”

“This alliance will not be elected again. It is outdated and rotten, and we have changed. We have already lived through our fears, we have seen everything and gone through it all. But this self-confident leech, this parasite, still cannot understand that his time has passed. That is his problem.”

https://jam-news.net/robert-kocharyan-named-prime-minister-candidate-will-he-become-represent-opposition-in-armenias-upcoming-elections/



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Armenia and Turkey explore boosting energy connectivity

Emil Lazarian
Eurasianet
Mar 17 2026

Taking steps towards economic normalization.

David O’Byrne Mar 17, 2026)

Energy interests are helping to fuel fresh efforts aimed at normalizing Armenian-Turkish relations.

Meeting on the sidelines of a gathering sponsored by the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA), Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, along with his minister for infrastructure, Davit Khudatyan, talked with Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar to explore a variety of energy-related connectivity issues. 

“We discussed infrastructure and energy issues that will contribute to lasting peace and stability in our region; within this scope, we addressed areas of cooperation, primarily electricity interconnection, nuclear energy, and natural gas,” Bayraktar stated in a social media post.

The March 10 meeting marked the highest-level contact between Armenian and Turkish officials since Pashinyan’s visit to Istanbul for talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last June.

That meeting has been widely viewed as kick starting a new reconciliation and rapprochement initiative. A previous effort to normalize relations stalled in 2010. 

The Istanbul visit was also seen as consistent with Pashinyan’s “Real Armenia“ strategy, under which his government strives to focus on economic development while setting aside historical grievances that have impeded the establishment of full diplomatic relations with Turkey, including an insistence that Ankara recognize the Ottoman-era mass killings of Armenians as genocide. 

None of the three ministers shared details of their March 10 discussions, although Bayraktar’s mention of energy and infrastructure issues suggested a focus on practical cooperation, without necessarily addressing the historical and ideological topics that have dominated bilateral relations since Armenia regained independence in 1991.

Speaking to journalists in Istanbul in February, Bayraktar said, “We support the normalization of economic relations with Armenia. We can realize cooperation in energy. This is an opportunity for both countries,” he said. 

While the meeting took place at the IAEA summit, nuclear cooperation was not likely a major subject of the Armenian-Turkish discussions. Both countries have nuclear power plants, but talks more likely to focused on integrating Armenia into regional power and natural gas transmission networks, as well as exploring new cooperation opportunities created by the Armenian-Azerbaijani provisional peace deal, and the landmark agreement to create the TRIPP corridor. 

For most of the post-Soviet era, Turkey and its strategic ally Azerbaijan maintained an economic blockade of Armenia as part of the decades-long conflict over the Nagorno Karabakh territory. Azerbaijan completed its reconquest of Karabakh in 2023 with Ankara’s help. Ankara has long signaled readiness to end the blockade – action that could boost the economic fortunes of poor regions bordering Armenia – but has hesitated out of a sense of loyalty to Baku. 

Armenia has few energy resources of its own and has been dependent on Russia and Iran for supplies of natural gas and petroleum products. Yerevan has also depended on Russia for nuclear fuel for its Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant, which meets up to 40 percent of Armenia’s electricity needs. 

Those supplies are now threatened by the ratcheting up of sanctions on Russia due to its invasion of Ukraine, and more immediately by the US-Israeli war in Iran. Armenia, which needs to replace the aging Metsamor plant, signed a nuclear cooperation agreement with the United States in February.

Although primarily expected to be a road and rail transport route, plans for the TRIPP corridor through southern Armenia also envisage the laying of a power transmission line and a gas pipeline.

Azerbaijan has already started laying 330 kilovolt (kV) lines on both sides of the corridor in anticipation that the envisioned US-run TRIPP Development Company will begin work on the route across Armenian territory.

Armenia already has a functioning 220 kilovolt (kV) connection with Turkey which, to date, has seen little use. Ankara is expected to upgrade and expand the connection as part of a wider program to increase power connectivity with Turkey’s near neighbors. 

Turkey completed construction of a gas pipeline link in 2025 to Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan exclave, which is expected to be extended through the TRIPP corridor to the Azerbaijani mainland. That pipeline could potentially be used to supply Armenia with gas from either Azerbaijan or Turkey. It would also be relatively straightforward for Ankara to extend a separate gas pipeline into northern Armenia from an existing line that runs through Kars province near the Armenian border.


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The flight of the Algerian Air Force to Baku through the territory of Armenia was for diplomatic purposes.

Emil Lazarian

The Lockheed Martin C-130J-30 Super Hercules aircraft of the Algerian Air Force made a diplomatic flight through the territory of Armenia to Azerbaijan. This was reported by the RA Ministry of Foreign Affairs in response to Sputnik Armenia’s inquiry.


“According to the information provided by the executing party, the flight of the C-130J aircraft on the Bufarik-Baku route through the airspace of Armenia took place for diplomatic purposes,” the Foreign Ministry emphasized.


It should be noted that the plane used Armenian airspace to fly from Ankara to Baku and from Baku to Boufarik (Algeria) in February.

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The retreat of the government on the eve of the elections

Emil Lazarian

The recent developments around the Armenian Apostolic Church show that the anti-church campaign initiated by the government has essentially reached a dead end.


Influential figures are already emerging from the group of clergy named “Tiradav”. Reverend Abraham, the leader of Vayots Dzor Diocese, voluntarily resigned from his position and was called to rest. Earlier, Archbishop Hovnan Terteryan, the leader of the American Western Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, also left that group.


However, I am far from thinking that Nikol Pashinyan has abandoned his anti-church and anti-constitutional policy. Another explanation is more likely. the political priorities of the government have simply changed. At this stage, Pashinyan is fully focused on the election campaign, trying to reduce the fronts that can take away his political and administrative resources.


However, the created situation reveals a deeper problem. The government’s resources are obviously limited. As a matter of fact, Pashinyan is not able to effectively manage several difficult political processes at the same time: conflict with the church, tense foreign political environment and electoral struggle.


This circumstance in itself is an eloquent political impetus. When the government is forced to retreat in one of the political fronts it has opened in order to focus on another, this already indicates its limited capabilities. In such a situation, the government gradually loses the initiative and switches to defensive tactics.


In such conditions, a lot depends on the opposition. If the opposition forces are able to conduct a competent, meaningful and organized campaign, the government may find itself in a political impasse. In that situation, the government will no longer dictate the political agenda, but will have to respond to the events and the agendas of the opposition.


A fundamental question is whether the opposition will be able to take advantage of the created opportunity and turn the resource limitation of the government into an opportunity for real political change.


Political scientist Suren Surenyants




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Hamazkayin W.R. Junior “Nor Shounch” Zartonk Book Club March 18

Emil Lazarian

Dear Hamazkayin friends and supporters, 

Hamazkayin Western Region Literary Unit’s “Nor Shounch” Young Adult Committee is excited to launch their 2026 Book Club. Join us as we read part one of Malkhas’s Zartonk. Our first meeting will involve group introductions and a presentation of the author’s biography and the novel’s historical context, followed by a discussion session based on the first selected chapter on Wednesday, 03/18. We will continue to meet on a bi-weekly basis. Meetings will primarily be held on Wednesday nights in-person at the Hamazkayin Cultural Center in Glendale, CA; however, this may be subject to change based on group preference and availability.

  • Book: Zartonk (Part One) by Malkhas

  • Ages: 18 – 35 years old

  • UPDATED DATE – Discussion: Wednesday, March 18, 2026, at 7:30pm 

  • Location: In-person: Hamazkayin Cultural Center, 1524 Canada Blvd. Glendale, CA. 91208 

  • We will send a confirmation email with additional information after completion of this interest form! 

Contact Armine at [email protected] or (323) 835 – 3681 with any questions or concerns.

We cordially invite you to the Book Club of the “New Breath” youth group of Hamazkayin Literary Union. We are waiting for you with love so that we can read the first volume of Malkhas’ novel “Awakening” together. Our first meeting will be in personWednesday, March 4night time7:30in During this meeting, we get to know each other, present the book and the reading plan, and discuss and analyze the first chapter of the novel. We will continue to meet every two weeks.

To secure your place, please fill out this Google Forms page or contact Armine Galpakian:[email protected]or (323) 835 – 3681.

https://forms.gle/jKYpYDYHf8Xs75HL9 

Warm regards,

Hamazkayin Western Region Literary Group Junior “Nor Shounch” 

Glendale, CA, USA

Stay connected with us:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/Hamazkayin-Western-Region-Literary-Group-103109858137951

Instagram: www.instagram.com/hamazkayinwrliterarygroup

Website: https://hamazkayin.com/en 

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@hamazkayinwest

Literary Group: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLvdiz1UC_DnRv9lr1178gaIvSPoS1djRL 

Hamazkayin: www.facebook.com/hamazkayinwr 

Email: [email protected] 

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Israel says troops launch ‘limited’ operations against Hezbollah in southern L

Emil Lazarian

Read the article in: ArmenianRussian:

The Israeli ‌military said on Monday that its ⁠troops had begun limited ground operations against Hezbollah positions ‌in ⁠southern Lebanon.

“IDF troops have begun limited and targeted ground operations against key Hezbollah strongholds in southern Lebanon, aimed at enhancing the forward defense area. This activity is part of broader defensive efforts to establish and strengthen a forward defensive posture, which includes the dismantling of terrorist infrastructure and the elimination of terrorists operating in the area, to create an additional layer of security for residents of northern Israel,” the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on X.

Published by Armenpress, original at 
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Justice Minister: Drafting of Armenia’s proposed new constitution completed

Emil Lazarian

Law12:15, 16 March 2026
Read the article in: English

Minister of Justice Srbuhi Galyan announced on Monday that the text of the proposed new Constitution, developed to replace the current one via referendum, is ready and will be discussed at the ruling Civil Contract party’s board meeting, as well as by its parliamentary faction.

Galyan made the announcement during the first session of the ministry’s public council.

“The Constitutional Reform Council is working very actively. We hold meetings every week, and the text is ready, as I promised. However, I don’t have any news about its publication yet, because it has been decided to also discuss the text within the Civil Contract party board and parliamentary faction. After that, a decision will be made regarding its publication,” the minister said.

The minister clarified that the conceptual provisions of the draft new Constitution of Armenia had been previously developed, while the text itself was drafted based on those provisions.

According to Galyan, the approach is as follows: the focus is on the individual—the citizen, the people—while there is no deviation from the established system of governance.

“We believe that the best _expression_ of the principles of democracy lies in parliamentarism. But we have made significant changes in the context of trying to further decentralize the branches of power and balance them, for example, by providing oversight mechanisms to the National Assembly over the activities of the Prime Minister, and so on,” Galyan said.

Regarding the judicial branch, the draft will allow for the institution of the jury system. It will also, as a principle, provide for the possibility of two-tier appeals, written case examination, and the ability to appeal decisions of the Supreme Judicial Council—options that do not exist today.

Galyan had earlier announced that the text of the draft new Constitution would be published in March 2026.

Read the article in: English

Published by Armenpress, original at 
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The Donroe Doctrine Explained by the Blimp

Emil Lazarian

· MARCH 16, 2026


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168: They decreased sharply. Look what happened to wages

Emil Lazarian

March: 16, 2026

Stele was an integral part of the CP members’ power. But lying also has a limit.

The other day, Economy Minister Gevorg Papoyan was talking about last year’s salary increases, making discoveries, publishing figures unknown to official statistics, saying that we see how the average salary in Armenia is constantly increasing.

“For the first time, in December, we had an average salary of 400,000 drams, taxes included, of course.

I look at all this not with the pre-election and electoral logic, but as the economic development of our country,” the Minister of Economy insisted.

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Let’s leave aside how well this statement of Gevorg Papoyan fits into the pre-election or election logic, let’s look at the figure he gave about the average salary.

But before that, let’s note that a few days ago, the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs made such a statement.

“2025 in December, the average salary in Armenia was 401 thousand drams.

Moreover, in November of the same year, that indicator was 327 thousand drams,” Arsen Torosyan advertised their recorded salary increases during the meeting with the CP faction, probably excited by their own salary gains.

Gevorg Papoyan and Arsen Torosyan are the ministers of this government who are directly related to salaries and hardly knew what the average salary in Armenia was in December. They probably knew, but they lied or gave false numbers, exaggerating the salary indicators.

The data published by the official statistics show that the average salary in Armenia in December last year was 400 thousand drams, moreover, it was not more than that.

According to official data, the average salary was much lower in December. It amounted to 376.7 thousand drams, 23.3 thousand drams less than 400 thousand.

But as we can see, this did not prevent Gevorg Papoyan, who holds the position of Minister of Economy, and Arsen Torosyan, who holds the position of Minister of Social Affairs, to talk about the average salary of 400 thousand or more than 400 thousand. Moreover, to try to create the impression that salaries are growing at a high rate.

Arsen Torosyan says that in November the average salary was 327 thousand drams, in December it became 401 thousand drams.

If Arsen Torosyan and the other officials had given them, let’s say, 17-18 million bonuses in December instead of 7-8 million, the difference would definitely be bigger. But the ministers who received millions of bonuses naturally avoid talking about it. Isn’t it clear that they won’t say that they were given millions in bonuses, that’s why average salary indicators jumped in December? But with that, they did not reach 400 thousand, as they try to present.

The average salary, after the widespread payment of bonuses in December, was much lower than intentionally, perhaps also unknowingly, these people declare. And what we see already in January of this year reveals the secret of salary growth.

In January of this year, compared to the previous month, the average salary in Armenia decreased significantly. If in December last year it was 376.7 thousand drams, in January of this year it was 293.3 thousand drams.

It decreased at once by 83.4 thousand drams or by more than 22 percent.

When we subtract the unseen high bonuses and bonuses distributed to government officials at the end of the year, we see what remains below the average salary. It is still not the real salary, it is the nominal salary, that is, before taxation.

If taxes are deducted, the real average salary is much lower. In January of this year, it was only 217 thousand drams.

This is despite the fact that the average salary in some sectors reaches 900 thousand, sometimes up to 1 million drams, which means that the salaries of hundreds of thousands of citizens in many other sectors are even much lower than the average. There are many people who receive the minimum wage, sometimes even lower.

Last year, the average salary in Armenia increased by 15.9 thousand drams. The growth is not high, only 5.5 percent, but it was also due to higher than average increases in several areas. Let’s say that the average salary in the mining industry increased by 53.5 thousand drams last year, almost 3.4 times more than the average salary.

The average salary increase in the financial system exceeded 50.6 thousand. The rate of growth is almost 3.2 times more than the average salary.

Instead, wages in many sectors of the economy have been much more modestly increased, and sometimes even decreased. And this means that there are no tangible changes in the lives of the citizens included in these groups from the high economic growth that they try to present as a world-viewing event or a world-level achievement. Not counting the fact that they are affected by inflation, increases in taxes and fees for individuals.

Imagine, in January of this year, compared to the same month last year, the average salary in Armenia increased by only 5.4 percent. At the same time, food inflation was 5.9 percent, 0.5 percentage points higher than average wage growth. It is obvious that only due to inflation, there has been a decline in the purchasing power of the society and deepening of poverty.

HAKOB KOCHARYAN




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