Author: Garo Vardanian

                                        Wednesday, 
Armenian, Chinese FMs Discuss Karabakh
CHINA -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi delivers his opening remarks at the 
Lanting Forum on in Beijing, February 22, 2021
Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan reportedly briefed his Chinese counterpart Wang 
Yi on the current state of the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process in a phone call on 
Wednesday.
“Presenting Armenia’s position on the establishment of peace and stability in 
the region, Ararat Mirzoyan stressed the importance of negotiations between 
Armenia and Azerbaijan in different directions as well as the role of the OSCE 
Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship in the settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,” 
reported the Armenian Foreign Ministry.
“The two sides emphasized the viability of the existing internationally accepted 
format of negotiations as well as the promotion of the peace process,” it said 
in a statement.
The Minsk Group has for decades been co-headed by the United States, Russia and 
France. Moscow says that Washington and Paris have stopped cooperating with it 
within that framework because of the war in Ukraine.
Yerevan has expressed hope that the three world powers will resume their joint 
mediation efforts.
Wang and Mirzoyan also stressed the importance of unblocking Armenia’s economic 
and transport links with Azerbaijan. They agreed that this will help to boost 
Chinese-Armenian commercial ties, added the Foreign Ministry statement.
China is already Armenia’s second most important trading partner after Russia. 
Chinese-Armenian trade surged by over 30 percent, to $1.26 billion, last year.
The two foreign ministers also discussed Chinese-Armenian relations. They said 
their governments are ready to “resolutely strengthen and deepen” them, 
according to the statement.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and his new Armenian counterpart Vahagn 
Khachaturian made similar pledges earlier this month when they exchanged 
congratulatory messages on the 30th anniversary of the establishment of 
diplomatic relations between the two states.
Pashinian Upbeat On Russian-Armenian Trade
Russia - Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and Armenian Prime Minister 
Nikol Pashinian meet in Moscow, .
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian expressed confidence on Wednesday that Armenia 
and Russia will deepen their economic ties despite what he called new “common 
challenges” facing the two countries.
Pashinian discussed with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin ways of 
increasing Russian-Armenian trade and launching joint economic projects on the 
second day of his official visit to Russia.
“We are certainly interested in expanding bilateral cooperation and launching 
new joint projects in areas such as energy, mining, transport infrastructure, 
pharmaceuticals, agro-industrial complex, digital economy, high technology, and 
innovation,” Mishustin told Pashinian.
The Russian and Armenian governments should speed up preparations for the 
signing of a new program of bilateral economic cooperation, he said in his 
opening remarks at the talks.
“I think that we are facing common challenges in the current situation,” 
Pashinian said, for his part. “But there are also opportunities which ... we 
should try to use.”
“I am sure that in the future we will continue to cooperate very effectively and 
find new ways and solutions for the further growth of mutual trade,” he added.
Armenia - Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and other senior officials attend a 
Russian-Armenian business forum in Yerevan, September 20, 2021.
The volume of Russian-Armenian trade grew strongly in 2021 and in January and 
February this year, solidifying Russia’s status as Armenia’s number trading 
partner. But it reportedly shrunk in March following the start of the Russian 
invasion of Ukraine and the resulting Western sanctions imposed on Russia.
Visiting Moscow last week, Armenian Economy Minister Kerobian said the two 
governments should work together to “urgently eliminate the causes of the 
decline and restore growth.” He also announced that Armenia has started paying 
for Russian natural gas in rubles.
Citing the “illegal sanctions,” Mishustin called for a greater use of the 
Russian as well as Armenian national currencies in mutual commercial operations.
Pashinian and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the impact of the 
sanctions during their meeting held outside Moscow on Tuesday. In a joint 
declaration issued after the talks, they criticized “the use of unilateral 
restrictive measures by a number of countries.” They also pledged to “jointly 
overcome the challenges caused by these measures.”
Because of its close economic links with Russia, Armenia is expected to be 
significantly affected by the Western sanctions. The World Bank and the 
International Monetary Fund have forecast that economic growth in the South 
Caucasus country will slow down considerably this year.
Former Foreign Minister Explains Resignation
        • Sargis Harutyunyan
ARMENIA -- Armenian Foreign Minister Ara Ayvazian at a meeting with his Russian 
counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Yerevan, May 6, 2021
Former Foreign Minister Ara Ayvazian has shed more light on his resignation last 
year and signaled support for the Armenian opposition’s stated efforts to oust 
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian.
Ayvazian stepped down on May 27, 2021 following an emergency meeting of 
Armenia’s Security Council which discussed mounting tensions on the 
Armenian-Azerbaijani border. The meeting came days after Azerbaijani troops 
reportedly advanced into Armenian territory at several sections of the border.
Speaking at a farewell meeting with the Armenian Foreign Ministry officials on 
May 31, Ayvazian hinted that he decided to quit because of disagreeing with 
government decisions which he believes put the country’s sovereignty and 
national security at risk. He did not go into details. His four deputies also 
tendered their resignations.
Ayvazian said late on Tuesday that he objected to Pashinian’s calls for a mutual 
withdrawal of Armenian and Azerbaijani forces from contested border areas and 
the deployment of international observers there.
“I believe that the mutual withdrawal [proposal] was a serious tactical mistake 
on our part,” he told journalists.
Ayvazian argued that the United States, France and other foreign powers stopped 
telling Baku to pull back its forces from Armenia’s Syunik and Gegharkunik 
provinces after Pashinian voiced his proposal. He said the proposal meant that 
Yerevan regards the border areas seized by Azerbaijani forces as disputed 
territory.
Armenia - Opposition leader Artur Vanetsian holds a news conference in Liberty 
Square, Yerevan, April 18, 2022.
Ayvazian, who was appointed as foreign minister in November 2020, spoke with 
reporters as he visited Yerevan’s Liberty Square to talk to Artur Vanetsian, an 
opposition leader who began a nonstop sit-there on Sunday.
Vanetsian’s Fatherland party and other major opposition groups have pledged to 
stage coordinated street protests in a bid to topple Pashinian over they see as 
unacceptable concessions to Azerbaijan planned by him.
Pashinian said last week that the international community is pressing Armenia to 
“lower a bit the bar on the question of Nagorno-Karabakh’s status” and recognize 
Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity. He signaled Yerevan’s intention to make such 
concessions to Baku, fuelling more opposition allegations that he has agreed to 
Azerbaijani control over Karabakh.
Asked whether he supports the opposition push for regime change, Ayvazian said: 
“I resigned because I thought that the policy pursued [by Pashinian’s 
government] does not help to further our national interests.”
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2022 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
 

                                        Friday, April 1, 2022
Putin, Pashinian Hold More Phone Talks
Russia - Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Armenian Prime Minister 
Nikol Pashinian, Moscow, July 7, 2021.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian 
spoke by phone for the second consecutive day on Friday, discussing the 
situation in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone.
The Kremlin reported that they continued “the exchange of opinions on 
maintaining stability in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.” It said they both 
stressed the need for “strict observance” of Armenian-Azerbaijani agreements 
brokered by Moscow during and after the 2020 war over Karabakh.
A statement on the phone call released by the Armenian government said the two 
men talked about “ongoing steps to ensure security and stability in 
Nagorno-Karabakh” and the “tense situation” there resulting from last week’s 
Azerbaijani incursion into the disputed territory.
Russia accused Azerbaijan of violating the ceasefire regime after Azerbaijani 
forces seized a village in eastern Karabakh and surrounding territory on March 
24. They reportedly withdrew from the village on Monday but continue to occupy 
nearby hills.
Putin discussed the situation in that area with Pashinian and Azerbaijani 
President Ilham Aliyev in separate phone calls reported on Thursday. Pashinian 
told him that the Azerbaijani side may be planning “new provocations.”
Putin phoned the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders the day after the announcement 
of fresh face-to-face talks between them that will be hosted by the European 
Union’s top official, Charles Michel, in Brussels on April 6.
Pashinian To Name Vanadzor Mayor Despite Local Election Loss
        • Gayane Saribekian
Armenia - The municipal administration building of Vanadzor, December 13, 2021.
Pro-government lawmakers on Friday pushed through the parliament a bill that 
allows Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian to appoint an acting mayor of Vanadzor, 
Armenia’s third largest city where his party was defeated in a local election 
held in December.
The ruling Civil Contract party won only 25 percent of the vote there, compared 
with 39 percent polled by a local bloc led by former Vanadzor Mayor Mamikon 
Aslanian.
Aslanian was thus well-placed to regain his post lost in October. But ten days 
after the election, he was arrested on corruption charges rejected by him as 
politically motivated.
Later in December, Armenia’s Administrative Court blocked the first session of 
Vanadzor’s new municipal council empowered to elect the mayor. It cited an 
appeal against the election results lodged by another pro-government party that 
fared poorly in the ballot.
The appeal was subsequently rejected by two other courts. The Bright Armenia 
Party responded by appealing to the higher Court of Cassation. The latter has 
still not said whether it will take up the case.
In the meantime, the Administrative Court banned in January the new Vanadzor 
council from holding sessions until July. Local and Yerevan-based opposition 
figures accused the court of acting on Pashinian’s orders.
Amendments to an Armenian law on local government quickly passed by the National 
Assembly empower the prime minister to name acting heads of communities whose 
newly elected councils fail to elect mayors within 20 days after local polls.
Vahagn Hovakimian, one of the authors of the amendments affiliated with Civil 
Contract, said it is aimed at addressing “disruption of normal governance” in 
such communities.
“We have such a problem in Vanadzor at the moment,” Hovakimian said during a 
short parliament debate held under a so-called “urgent procedure.”
Opposition lawmakers dismissed the official rationale for amending the law. They 
insisted that Pashinian is doing everything to retain control over Vanadzor and 
possibly other communities against the will of local voters.
Armenia - Former Vanadzor Mayor Mamikon Aslanian at an election campaign meeting 
with voters in Vanadzor, November 23, 2021.
“We are discussing an issue which solely applies to a community or communities 
where [the ruling party] failed to take power,” said Agnesa Khamoyan of the 
Hayastan alliance.
“If the authors of this bill were a bit more honest they would call it a bill on 
disenfranchising Mamikon Aslanian and the people of Vanadzor,” charged another 
Hayastan parliamentarian.
Four other communities were also left in limbo as a result of nationwide local 
elections held on December 5. Pashinian’s party was defeated or failed to win 
outright there. Opposition politicians and human rights campaigners in Yerevan 
accused the authorities of sabotaging the election of their new mayors to 
prevent them from falling under opposition control.
In one such community comprising the town of Vartenis and surrounding villages, 
police cordoned off the municipal administration building in early January to 
prevent a local opposition figure, Aharon Khachatrian, from taking over as 
mayor. Khachatrian finally managed to take office last month.
Deal On Karabakh’s Status ‘Still Important’ For Yerevan
        • Sargis Harutyunyan
        • Astghik Bedevian
Armenia - Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan (right) meets with his 
Polish counterpart Zbigniew Rau, Yerevan, April 1, 2022.
Armenia plans to bring up the issue of Nagorno-Karabakh’s status during upcoming 
talks on an Armenian-Azerbaijani peace treaty sought by Azerbaijan, Foreign 
Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said on Friday.
Mirzoyan also said Yerevan hopes that Russia, the United States and France, 
which co-chair the OSCE Minsk Group, will mediate those talks despite their 
bitter standoff over the conflict in Ukraine.
“As you know, the Azerbaijani side presented some proposals [on the peace 
treaty] to the Armenian side and we found those proposals acceptable while 
saying that they do not fully address the whole scope of issues,” he told 
reporters. “So we complemented those proposals with our own proposals by adding 
that the issue of Nagorno-Karabakh’s rights and status is key to us.”
“We hope that the co-presidency of the OSCE Minsk Group will manage after all to 
organize peace talks with this agenda and with the aim of signing a 
comprehensive peace treaty,” he added at a joint news conference with Poland’s 
visiting Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau.
The Azerbaijani proposals cited by Mirzoyan call for a peace accord based on 
five elements, including a mutual recognition of each other’s territorial 
integrity. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian publicly stated on Thursday that 
Yerevan is ready to negotiate a deal along these lines.
Pashinian did not explicitly mention the question of Karabakh’s status, speaking 
instead of the need to protect “the rights of Nagorno-Karabakh’s Armenians.”
His remarks were construed by Armenian opposition leaders and other critics as a 
further indication that Pashinian’s government is ready to recognize Azerbaijani 
sovereignty over Karabakh.
Armenia - Dashnaktsutyun party leaders Armen Rustamian (left) and Hagop Der 
Khatchadurian hold a news conference in Yerevan, March 10, 2022.
Armen Rustamian, a senior member of the main opposition Hayastan alliance, 
claimed on Friday that Pashinian has essentially met all Azerbaijani demands. He 
noted that the Armenian government is refusing to publicize its official 
response to Baku’s proposals on the peace treaty.
“We are still trying to get a copy of that text,” Rustamian told RFE/RL’s 
Armenian Service. “I presume that if that text makes reference to Artsakh 
(Karabakh), it contains very vague wordings such as protection of ‘people’s 
rights.’”
“This means nothing unless we say that those rights cannot be protected if the 
right to self-determination is not upheld as well,” he said.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said on Thursday that he is encouraged by 
Yerevan’s response to his proposals. Aliyev again claimed that Baku put an end 
to the Karabakh conflict with its victory in the 2020 war.
Aliyev and Pashinian are scheduled to meet in Brussels on April 6 for fresh 
talks that will be hosted by European Council President Charles Michel.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2022 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.