April 2, 2026
Satik Seyranyan’s guest in the “Pressing” program is religious scholar, sociologist and philosopher Vardan Khachatryan.
The main theses of the interview are below.
- When one of the greatest preachers I know, who did a great work in Africa, came to Armenia, he asked me to take him to Etchmiadzin. The Cathedral was not yet renovated. He himself entered, looked at the dark walls and raised his hands, which is not characteristic of Protestants… He surrendered to the sacred, sacred identity of the Armenian people…
- It is not possible to act in the sphere of the spiritual with push and fists, under no circumstances, because it will cause a crack, which cannot and cannot be filled in any way. Spiritual unity cannot be broken. No choice should have anything to do with a singular moment that holds eternity within it. What happened inside the Saint Anna church was an unacceptable process… The church is the cradle, the tabernacle of light, from which the Armenian Christian crowd is fed.
- You can be a participant in the liturgy, a communicator from the last rows, why do you break through the crowd and go to the first rows… There are no high and low people in the world religion, there are believers. It was an excess. It doesn’t matter where you stand during Mass…
- Only the Mormon choir sings the canonical version of the American national anthem. 1/3 of the population of the USA is in the Mormon sphere, they have a significant weight.
- The mechanism of violence works to ensure the reproduction of power as much as possible. There is a prosecutor’s office, a thousand and one institutions that ensure the institutional protection of the government, but it cannot be abused.
- It is impossible to find such a people, such a center of gravity, as the Armenians have on the face of the earth.
- Where there is money and power, there is vice, but one cannot look for vice in a power that has internal wealth. these are the words of Confucius.
- Sitting next to Putin with his imagined map of Armenia on his chest meant that Armenia will maintain the foreign policy line it has followed until now. It wasn’t for Putin, it was a photo shoot in front of the cameras, a symbol that will later be able to play during the election campaign.:
- We tried to sign the European Association Agreement (CEPA), and one of the key points in it, for example, was that Armenia would be given a privilege to import light industrial products to Europe, which happened in the case of Georgia. At least I haven’t seen any country that signed up to the euro association that didn’t end badly. What happened to Georgia… Nothing, they said, the level of Georgian wines does not correspond to the level of European wines. That’s it. Georgians lost the huge Russian market, gained nothing in the European market. The French company “Pernod Ricard” bought the Georgian winery, which sold in pennies, because he considered that if the Russian market does not exist, they do not claim any results. Now let’s think about what can replace the Russian market in our case.
- Europe is not the Europe of today, which can do everything and digest. A mega war against Iran has taken place today, and it is not yet known how it will end. America is ready to sacrifice the last American to win that war, just like Europe, the former Prime Minister of Great Britain, Boris Johnson, declared that it was necessary to sacrifice the last Ukrainian to win against the Russians.
- Yesterday’s meeting between Pashinyan and Putin was perhaps the toughest. that was what yesterday’s leitmotif suggested.
- Europe understands that its relationship with the US is in jeopardy. In this case, Europe can have ambitions of future rise only through China, and this can happen only over Azerbaijan, based on which we have to consider our possible steps. Is this compatible with our interests?
- I don’t understand, brother, how Turkey became our friend… every thought of that country is only to slaughter more Armenians.
- Didn’t the Armenian people see the fortune of Syria? If we must learn wisdom and experience only from our own mistakes, we will perish:
- According to Pashinyan, what is Europe and where does he want to go? Is there any analytical document, is there an analysis that, for example, the structure of the economy of Germany, France or Austria is such that we can have a presence there?
- The 42 km that we have given, TRIPP, will we be able to control in any way, check what they are carrying: weapons or something else? Once you try, the site will become an open road against our interests, which will not be stopped in any way. It’s another thing if all the roads are unblocked. Whatever economic benefit there may be, it will not be 1/100th of the benefits brought by the Russian market. Yesterday, Putin told Pashinyan: think, if you want to leave your interests and get problems, you are free in your choice…
- Europe is dependent, it even freed its automobile industry, European cars are produced in the USA and China:
- Either we will take small steps forward, or we will take large steps in the most dangerous direction for us. The emerging new world will not have the outcomes we imagine.
- The scenario of Moldova was possible at that time. Yesterday, Putin hinted that the Moldovan scenario would not work. Make a fair election, the results will be recognized by all, but if there will be an artificial mosaic, you will have problems in the emerging world.
- Folks, a multi-polar world means wars will continue, and we won’t avoid it, no matter how much we want to. If we cannot prepare for war, the anti-Armenian policy of Azerbaijan and Turkey will not change:
- Putin did not say that Russian citizens should come and run in the elections, but this does not mean that the forces that have a Russian orientation should be persecuted in Armenia.:
- Today, two powers, two poles have been created: incredibly rising China, which cannot be impoverished because it has Russia as an ally, and Iran, which is a unique translator of the Eurasian continent. We will face the dangers of the emerging world, and there will be no questioning. We don’t need to stand out at this moment by immediate decisions: we belong to this or that army. We have always distinguished ourselves as a nation of the third bell. You don’t have to forget that.
- If you can fit into the newly formed China-Russia-Iran axis, you will have achievements that you never dreamed of. Overchuk was saying that, will you be in the core of those interests, will you have more, won’t you, will you have losses? Today’s world cannot imagine otherwise. Everyone will act in the focus of their interests.
- If after what happened to us, we have to believe that the Turkic-speaking peoples will serve the Armenian interests, then long live the Turks. You don’t have to commit suicide. If you gouge out your eyes with your own fingers, do not complain that you are blind:
- It is the delusion of a drunkard. what does it mean: you will come, fight for us, give us money too?
- The rating of the Armenian Apostolic Church is more than 80%. Does any other institution or individual claim more, have a higher reputation?
- Did that person want to breed crocodiles? But didn’t they know that crocodile meat causes infertility in men?
- Today, the world is divided into parts, and it is as a result of united action that the United States did not succeed in Iran. There will no longer be a hegemonic state in the world. There is no longer that possibility. Why does Iran say that oil should be sold in yuan? it’s not Iran saying it, China is saying it. The new world will have nothing to do with the replica of the previous world:
- Iran cannot settle for anything other than a peace document guaranteeing an undisputed peace that reflects Iran’s vital interests. Russia does the same in the case of Ukraine. This is the result of a unified approach. Iran cannot allow them to leave now and come again in 6 months.
- Let’s not forget that when Nazarbayev left Kazakhstan, he went to Turkey. Let’s also not forget that when Nikol Pashinyan was the chairman of the CSTO, and the attempted uprising in Kazakhstan was suppressed, Erdogan announced that the bony hands of Armenians and Russians came to seize and strangle the diamond of Turkic-speaking peoples, Kazakhstan. The Turkic world is an emerging phenomenon that will blast Russia from the south, isolate China from the railways and conventional roads it has built. Should we become a satellite of these hostile actions?:
- We will always be faced with a dilemma, and let that not scare anyone, if you are knowledgeable, understand trends and trends, you will not go wrong. And if there is no strategy, where are you going…
Details in the video.
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RFE/RL – Pashinian ‘Satisfied’ With Tense Talks With Putin
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian on Thursday described as “very successful” his latest visit to Moscow marked by stern warnings issued to him by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“We reached concrete understandings in all areas of our agenda, from culture to military-technical cooperation,” he told journalists. “And I assess the visit as very successful.”
Pashinian did not elaborate on those understandings. Official readouts of the talks said nothing about them.
Putin made unusually long and blunt remarks at the start of the meeting at the Kremlin open to the media. In particular, he warned Armenian authorities against disqualifying what he called pro-Russian opposition groups or politicians from the country’s upcoming parliamentary elections. Some of them are currently under arrest “despite holding Russian passports,” Putin said in a clear reference to Samvel Karapetian, a Russian-Armenian billionaire prosecuted after condemning Pashinian’s attempts to depose Catholicos Garegin II.
Pashinian responded by saying that under the Armenian constitution, dual citizens like Karapetian cannot become prime ministers or even hold parliament seats. He suggested on Thursday that Putin was not aware of that constitutional hurdle.
“The Russian president, especially considering the scale of his country and the agenda he is dealing with, could not have gone into details even if he wanted to,” he said. “I think he was not informed about that nuance.”
Karapetian’s opposition movement has emerged in recent months as one of the ruling Civil Contract party’s main challengers. It plans to run in the June 7 polls without including the tycoon on its list of candidates. Pashinian did not say whether this or other major opposition groups could be barred from the contest.
Pashinian’s government has raised opposition fears of such bans by asking the European Union to deploy a “hybrid rapid response team” to Armenia after implicitly alleging Russian “hybrid” threats to the integrity of the electoral process. The EU sent such a mission in Moldova for the parliamentary elections held there last September. Two Moldovan opposition parties deemed pro-Russian were disqualified from the vote won by the former Soviet republic’s pro-Western leadership.
Putin on Wednesday also repeated Russian warnings about economic consequences of Armenia’s possible membership in the European Union sought by Yerevan. He noted that Armenia is heavily dependent on Russia for not only trade but also Russian natural supplied at a significant discount.
The Russian and Armenian leaders also publicly sparred over Pashinian’s decisions to recognize Azerbaijani sovereignty over Nagorno-Karabakh and freeze Armenia’s membership in the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).
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Moscow Warns Of Economic Fallout From Yerevan’s ‘Anti-Russian’ Moves
Russia on Thursday threatened to retaliate strongly against what it described as the Armenian government’s efforts to push Russia’s state-owned railway monopoly and other major companies out of Armenia.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk said Yerevan is seeking to minimize Russian economic presence in the South Caucasus country in hopes of aligning itself with the West. He singled out its recent demands for an end to Russian management of Armenia’s rail network and controversial seizure of the national electric utility owned by Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetian.
“Comparing words with deeds, you come to the conclusion that our [Armenian] colleagues are very close to the point after which we will have to build our economic relations with that country in a different way,” Overchuk told the official TASS news agency in an extensive interview.
“We are interested in increasing trade with Armenia as well as with all the states of the region,” he said. “But if we are told that the presence of Russian companies in Armenia does not correspond to the interests of Armenia, then, based on the principle of reciprocity, it will be fair to ask: if Russian companies and entrepreneurs cannot be present and make money in Armenia, then why Armenian companies and entrepreneurs can be present and make money in Russia?”
The interview was published the day after Russian President Vladimir Putin publicly issued stern warnings to Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian during talks held in Moscow. In particular, Putin said that the Pashinian government’s moves to eventually join the European Union are “not compatible” with Armenia’s continued membership in the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), a Russian-led trade bloc that gives Armenian exporters tariff-free access to Russia’s vast market.
He noted that Russia remains Armenia’s most important trading partner and supplies natural gas to the South Caucasus state at a significant discount. Pashinian responded by again saying that Armenia will eventually have to choose between the two blocs.
According to Armenian government data, Russia accounted for 35.8 percent of Armenia’s foreign trade last year, followed by China (12.3 percent) and the European Union (11.7 percent).
“Not only do we not have any problems with Russia but on the contrary, we highly value our friendly relations and do not want to harm Russia’s interests in any way,” Pashinian told reporters in Yerevan on Thursday. “But on the other hand, this situation does not allow us to use our competitive advantages, and we must think together about what solution we can find.”
The Armenian premier referred to his recent calls for the termination a 30-year management contract signed with the Russian Railways (RZhD) operator in 2008. He said on February 13 that the Armenian railway should be run by another, non-Russian company because its current status discourages Turkey and Azerbaijan from using a much larger section of Armenian territory for transit purposes in the near future. The Russian Foreign Ministry dismissed Pashinian’s statement as “bizarre” and “not acceptable.”
Overchuk similarly told TASS that there are “no objective reasons” for RZhD to sell its concessionary management rights to another foreign operator. He brushed aside Yerevan’s declared rationale for such a deal, arguing that Turkey is already building a railway that will run from the eastern Turkish city of Kars to Azerbaijan’s Nakhichevan exclave bypassing Armenia.
Pashinian said he discussed the issue with Putin “in detail” on Wednesday. He did not report any agreements reached by them. He also said he is “not planning” to unilaterally scrap the management contract with RZhD.
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RFE/RL – Former Karabakh Leader Hits Back At Pashinian
Samvel Shahramanian, Nagorno-Karabakh’s former leader, on Thursday rejected Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s latest claims that the Karabakh Armenians did not fight back during Azerbaijan’s September 2023 military offensive.
Shahramian also blamed Pashinian’s for the region’s resulting capture by Baku.
“It is thanks to [the Armenian authorities’] actions that the people of Artsakh are in such a situation today and the Armenian people lost Artsakh,” he told reporters.
Azerbaijan launched the offensive in Karabakh on September 19, 2023 nearly three years after a ceasefire deal brokered by Russia halted a six-week Armenian-Azerbaijani war. Its troops greatly outnumbered and outgunned Karabakh’s small army that received no military support from Armenia.
After 24-hour hostilities, Karabakh’s leaders agreed to disband the Defense Army in return for Baku stopping the assault and allowing the region’s more than 100,000 remaining residents to flee to Armenia. They maintain that this was the only way of guaranteeing the physical safety of the Karabakh Armenians.
At least 198 soldiers and 25 civilian residents of Karabakh were killed during the fighting. The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry acknowledged roughly 200 combat deaths among its military personnel involved in the operation.
“These myths that [the Karabakh Armenians] fought to the end and so on are lies,” Pashinian claimed on March 26. “There was no such thing, they fled, they ran away.”
Shahramanian dismissed the claims as “nonsense,” saying that they are aimed at dividing the Armenian society and spreading “intolerance” towards the Karabakh refugees.
Pashinian and some of his political allies have made such allegations before. In particular, the premier said in June 2024 that Karabakh forces “did not fight” because the authorities in Stepanakert as well as the Armenian opposition wanted the region’s population to flee to Armenia to topple him.
Those statements provoked a storm of condemnation from Armenian opposition leaders and public figures as well as Karabakh refugees. One of those refugees, a young woman, held Pashinian responsible for the fall of Karabakh as he campaigned for Armenia’s upcoming parliamentary elections on Yerevan’s subway on March 22. The premier lost his temper, brandinf the Karabakh Armenian as “fugitives” and saying they have no moral right to denounce him. He later apologized for his outburst condemned by his detractors and even some sympathizers.
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Russia comments on possible extension of Armenian Nuclear Power Plant operatio
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk addressed the issue of extending the operational life of Armenia’s nuclear power plant.
In an interview with TASS news agency, Overchuk said that Rosatom could extend the Armenian nuclear power plant’s operation until 2036. However, he emphasized that “Armenia has chosen a European vector, giving preference to certain European contractors.”
Overchuk noted that the plant’s current operational license runs until autumn 2026, while preparations are underway to extend it until 2031.
“This will be done. Our specialists also believe that it is possible to extend the plant’s operation until 2036, but certain conditions must be met,” he said.
He added that, within the framework of Armenia’s European development vector, most of the contractual work for the extension is being awarded to European contractors. “These contractors lack experience working in seismically hazardous areas and do not coordinate their work with the plant’s chief designer,” Overchuk said.
He further stated that Rosatom’s guarantee for safe operation of the plant until 2036 is conditional upon the state corporation securing at least 70% of the contractual work required for the extension.
Published by Armenpress, original at
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Armenia sees rapid growth in solar power installations
In recent years, Armenia has experienced a sharp increase in the installation of solar power plants, the Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) chief said on Thursday.
“According to the sector development strategy up to 2040, by 2030 we were expected to have solar power plants with a total capacity of 1,000 megawatts in the country. However, by the end of 2025, the existing capacity had already exceeded this target,” Mesrop Mesropyan, Chairman of the PSRC, said during the Cabinet meeting.
“As of March 1 of this year, the total capacity of solar power plants reached 1,141 megawatts, of which 479 megawatts are industrial-scale, and 662 megawatts are autonomous rooftop installations,” Mesropyan added, noting that an additional 170 megawatts of solar power plants will be constructed soon under previously issued licenses.
Published by Armenpress, original at
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Armenia to introduce license for energy storage facilities
A new license is planned in the energy sector that will allow energy to be stored within designated facilities.
The bill was approved at a Cabinet meeting and forwarded to parliament.
David Khudatyan, Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure, presented the regulation at the Cabinet meeting on April 2.
“At the same time, the license will allow, in accordance with market rules, the right to buy and sell electricity on the wholesale market and to provide storage services to market participants. Licensing will not apply to energy storage at facilities with a capacity of up to 1 megawatt, or to storage of electricity at facilities larger than 1 megawatt for self-consumption only,” the minister explained.
He noted that such regulation had not previously been necessary in the sector, as energy storage technologies have only recently seen widespread use globally and in Armenia.
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Pashinyan hails ‘very successful’ Russia trip
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said his April 1 visit to Russia was “very successful” and that he achieved concrete agreements during his talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Asked at a press briefing what agreements were reached, Pashinyan said: “We have reached concrete agreements in several areas; in fact, we have secured specific agreements across our entire agenda, from culture to military-technical cooperation. I consider the visit to be very successful,” the Prime Minister added.
Published by Armenpress, original at
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Armenia and Russia to continue talks on railway concession management
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has said that his April 1 visit to Russia, during which he met with President Vladimir Putin, included detailed discussions about the potential transfer of the management rights of Armenia’s railway network – currently held by Russia – to another country.
“Yes, that issue was discussed in detail,” Pashinyan said at a press briefing on Thursday when asked about the matter.
“We had an in-depth conversation, presented our positions and views, and listened to the positions of our Russian partners. We agreed to continue the discussions. The essence of these discussions is as follows: the issue can be formulated in just one sentence—under the current conditions, the Republic of Armenia is losing its potential competitive advantages. Our task is to ensure that Armenia is able to fully realize its competitive potential. We have no problems with Russia; on the contrary, we highly value our friendly relations and do not want to harm Russia’s interests in any way. But at the same time, the current situation does not allow us to make use of our competitive advantages, and we must jointly consider what solution can be found,” the Prime Minister said.
Pashinyan has previously called for an end to Russian management of Armenia’s railway network, which operates under a concession agreement. He has specifically stated that, in the context of current regional connectivity development projects, it would be preferable for another country—particularly one with friendly ties to both Armenia and Russia—to take over management. He argued that some countries might choose not to ship goods through Armenia due to Russian management of the railway system, thereby reducing Armenia’s competitiveness.
However, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk has said there are no “objective reasons” to sell the management rights of Armenian railways to another country.
Published by Armenpress, original at
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Armenia to open off-budget account to manage PM’s Zayed Award prize
The Government of Armenia has approved a decision allowing the Prime Minister’s Office to open an off-budget deposit account to manage the $500,000 prize awarded within the framework of the 2026 Zayed Award for Human Fraternity.
The decision establishes the legal basis for managing the funds and aims to ensure transparency in their management, as well as their targeted use, the press service of the Government said in a statement.
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