Armenia’s National Assembly has adopted amendments to the Electoral Code in a second and final reading, introducing a ban on the use of personal names in the titles of electoral blocs and parties.
The changes passed in a final reading with 67 votes in favor and 6 against.
Under the new rules, bloc names may no longer include individuals’ names or references to state and local government bodies. The measure is expected to affect initiatives linked to prominent figures, including businessman Samvel Karapetyan and his “Strong Armenia” bloc.
Lawmakers also reinstated stricter ballot secrecy provisions. Ballots will now again be invalidated if envelopes contain any items other than the official ballot — a rule removed in 2024 and now restored.
Authorities argue the change is necessary to prevent vote-buying schemes, where voters could be asked to include identifying markers in envelopes to prove compliance.
The amendments are intended to close procedural loopholes and reinforce electoral integrity ahead of upcoming elections.
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Lukashenko Urges Caution on Armenia as Yerevan Leaves CSTO Future Open
Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has urged a “careful and accurate” approach toward Armenia within the CSTO, as Yerevan continues to freeze its participation in the alliance.
Speaking to CSTO Secretary General Taalatbek Masadykov, Lukashenko noted that Armenia “seems not to support work within the CSTO, yet at the same time remains in the organization.”
He warned that the bloc should take into account Armenia’s domestic political situation. “The situation in Armenia is difficult… particularly during the election period,” he said.
Armenia suspended its participation in the CSTO in February 2024, citing dissatisfaction with the organization’s response to its security concerns.
At the same time, Armenian lawmaker Andranik Kocharyan indicated that full withdrawal remains possible. “Never say never. The world is very turbulent,” he said.
He also criticized the CSTO’s lack of concrete support. “They didn’t act, right? Our problem arose from the situation at Armenia’s borders, and we asked the CSTO for support two or three times. That support, aside from verbal statements, did not produce any results for us,” he added.
Kocharyan stressed that any future decision will be based solely on Armenia’s national interests.
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Armenia Records Strong Tourism Growth in Early 2026
Armenia recorded a sharp rise in tourism in the first quarter of the year, with 453,138 visitors — up 18.2% year-on-year, Economy Minister Gevorg Papoyan said.
The increase marks the highest first-quarter figure on record.
“This is 18.2% higher – or more than 70,000 additional tourists – compared to the same period last year,” Papoyan said.
The surge comes alongside steady growth in air travel. Passenger traffic at Zvartnots and Shirak airports exceeded 5.3 million between January and November 2025.
Zvartnots accounted for over 5.18 million passengers, while Shirak handled just over 127,000.
Overall traffic rose by 7.3% compared to the same period in 2024, reflecting continued recovery and expansion in Armenia’s travel sector.
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Zakharova: Moscow will respond to Baku’s demand not to mention Karabakh
Russia will provide Azerbaijan with a response through diplomatic channels to the statement of the republic’s Foreign Ministry regarding the requirement not to mention the Karabakh issue, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
She recalled that Russia, and especially Russian President Vladimir Putin, played a crucial role in resolving the conflict in Karabakh.
“We have consistently sought to create the necessary conditions for resolving this most sensitive and complex issue in relations between Baku and Yerevan… It was thanks to our efforts that we managed to achieve an end to the bloodshed in the fall of 2020,” Zakharova said.
She also recalled that thanks to Moscow’s efforts, it was possible to launch the process of normalization of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
However, Zakharova noted that there is still a lot to be done for a final settlement — to sign a peace treaty, resume transport and economic ties, delineate and demarcate borders, and strengthen trust between citizens of the two countries.
Earlier, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry called on Russia “not to use the Karabakh conflict in political discussions.”
https://eadaily.com/en/news/2026/04/09/zakharova-moscow-will-respond-to-bakus-demand-not-to-mention-karabakh
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Russia to Armenia: Do as We Say
When on April 1, Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan met Vladimir Putin in the Russian capital, the Armenian leader’s agenda was clear — to bolster his difficult position before the June parliamentary elections.
It did not go smoothly.
The Russian side used the opportunity to present an ultimatum to Yerevan and to broadcast the videoed exchange — choose us, Putin told Pashinyan, or choose the European Union (EU). You cannot choose both.
The Russian logic is clear — one cannot be a member state in mutually exclusive supranational economic entities such as the EU and the Russian-dominated Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).
Russia is “absolutely calm” about Armenia’s efforts to forge closer ties with the EU, Putin said. While Pashinyan agreed that his country could not straddle both blocs indefinitely, he would have understood the menacing underlying message. Russia does not like the countries of what it terms the near-abroad to look wistfully westward. That was one key reason why the Kremlin invaded Ukraine, after all.
The discussion moved on to other sensitive issues, including another Russian-run grouping, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a six-member alliance that’s a low-fat version of NATO.
Armenia has not forgotten or forgiven Russia’s dismissal of its appeals for help during and after the second Nagorno-Karabakh war of 2020 with non-CSTO member Azerbaijan. The Russian president said action had been impossible given that the region belonged to Azerbaijan, and that Armenia’s internationally recognized territory remained largely intact.
The 20-minute filmed exchange then moved on to far more abstract topics such as democracy and internet freedom in Armenia. The Russian president seemed uninterested and slightly irritated to hear Pashinyan’s digression, including comments on freedom that would be construed as critical of Russian authoritarianism.
Neither side can regard the exchanges as very helpful. Indeed, it seemed the meeting highlighted mutual distrust between the two long-time allies. Tensions have grown in intensity over the past year or so, when preparations for the June 7 parliamentary elections began. Pro-government Armenian politicians have consistently hinted that Russia has been working behind the scenes to deepen and exploit relations between the administration and the Armenian church.
Relatedly, Russia wants its ally, Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan, to run as a potential candidate with the Strong Armenia party. The country’s leadership countered by launching an investigation against Karapetyan, placing him under house arrest. On that matter, Pashinyan told the Russian leader that “only citizens holding an Armenian passport — and no other nationality — can run in these elections”. Karapetyan says he has been stripped of his Russian nationality.
Russia sees an opportunity in Armenia. The upcoming elections present a perfect opportunity to solve what it sees as the Pashinyan problem. The 50-year-old former journalist came to power in 2018 via a peaceful revolution that was not explicitly anti-Russian but which looked to the Kremlin awfully like the so-called color revolutions that swept many sympathetic regimes in neighboring states.
Pashinyan suffers low popularity, and the Kremlin now hopes to advance its allies, which mostly feature politicians from the pre-2018 period.
Armenia has few options to counter Russian pressure. But it does have the option of withdrawal from CSTO and the EAEU, and made some signals indicating that after the Moscow meeting.
Yet the room for maneuver is tight, and Putin has already acted on his threat. Soon after the summit, Moscow announced tighter requirements for Armenian imports. The agricultural watchdog, Rosselkhoznadzor, argued that a large part of Armenian exports might not meet EAEU sanitary requirements. Russia can also use other tested weapons in its well-used coercive armory — for example, it sells gas to Armenia at a much lower price than EU levels.
Armenia’s options are limited. It’s true that the country has lately improved its ties with Turkey and Azerbaijan. Talks on reopening the long-closed border with Turkey, as well as transit through Azerbaijan underway, with some tangible results already in place. Moreover, Azeri rhetoric toward Armenia has markedly softened, and there seems to be a genuine hope for a long-term peace to be enshrined in a peace document. Both sides are also cooperating on the Trump Route planned to pass through Armenia’s southernmost region of Syunik.
Yet, this does not guarantee Armenia’s long-term security. With Iran in flames and with Azerbaijan and Turkey becoming ever closer militarily, the regional balance of power does not favor the Armenian state. Russia remains a critical component in Yerevan’s security calculus.
Then there is the EU, which has, over the two years, expanded its engagement with Yerevan but still has little to offer in terms of concrete steps that would open the door to Armenian membership. Any such prospect seems far off in the future, despite consistent French support for the country.
The Pashinyan-Putin exchanges illustrated Russia’s keen understanding of Armenia’s dilemmas and difficulties. And that its efforts to walk a narrow line between competing blocs, of playing one side against the other, has its limits.
Yerevan is increasingly facing a Russia that is more demanding, willing to issue ultimatums and to employ its well-thumbed encyclopedia of coercion to raise pressure in the run-up to the parliamentary vote. Yerevan has few options to resist.
Emil Avdaliani is a research fellow at the Turan Research Center and a professor of international relations at the European University in Tbilisi, Georgia. His research focuses on the history of silk roads and the interests of great powers in the Middle East and the Caucasus.
Europe’s Edge is CEPA’s online journal covering critical topics on the foreign policy docket across Europe and North America. All opinions expressed on Europe’s Edge are those of the author alone and may not represent those of the institutions they represent or the Center for European Policy Analysis. CEPA maintains a strict intellectual independence policy across all its projects and publications.
https://cepa.org/article/russia-to-armenia-do-as-we-say/
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Arménie. Les réfugiés du Haut-Karabakh face à la paix dictée par Bakou
9 avril 2026
Arménie. Les réfugiés du Haut-Karabakh face à la paix dictée par Bakou
Les discussions de paix entre l’Arménie et l’Azerbaïdjan se sont accélérées sous l’impulsion de l’administration Trump. Si elle peut amener une stabilité, bienvenue dans la région, la paix selon les règles de Bakou n’est pas imaginable pour les réfugiés du Haut-Karabakh. Reportage.
Hugo Laulan
Le rouge, le bleu et l’orange. Les trois couleurs du drapeau de l’Arménie se déclinent un peu partout dans Erevan, la capitale. L’étendard flotte au-dessus des bâtiments officiels, sur les places, ou en format miniature dans les commerces. Accroché à un balcon à côté de la Cascade, rue Tamanyan, un autre drapeau se fait une place : celui de la république du Haut-Karabakh, appelée « Artsakh » par les Arméniens. Il reprend les mêmes couleurs que le drapeau arménien mais s’en distingue par la présence d’un chevron en gradins, symbole de la séparation entre le Haut-Karabakh et le reste de l’Arménie.
En septembre 2023, l’Azerbaïdjan a lancé une offensive éclair et repris en quelques jours le contrôle total de la province peuplée majoritairement d’Arméniens. Plus de 100 000 personnes étaient contraintes à l’exil. Cette offensive faisait suite à la « deuxième guerre du Haut-Karabakh »en 2020, au cours de laquelle l’Azerbaïdjan avait repris le contrôle d’une partie du territoire. Près de 4 000 personnes avaient été tuées durant ce conflit côté arménien, un peu moins de 3 000 côté azerbaïdjanais.
Depuis, Nikol Pachinian, Premier ministre de l’Arménie, et Ilham Aliyev, président de l’Azerbaïdjan, tentent de normaliser leurs relations. L’arrivée à la Maison blanche de Donald Trump au début de l’année 2025 a impulsé une nouvelle dynamique dans le dialogue entre les deux dirigeants.
« Je pense que lorsque Donald Trump évoque tous les conflits qu’il a résolus, celui entre l’Arménie et l’Azerbaïdjan est peut-être le plus avancé », explique Tigran Grigoryan, directeur du Centre régional pour la démocratie et la sécurité (CRDS), basé à Erevan. « Ce n’est pas comme s’il y avait une guerre avant l’intervention de Trump, mais il y avait beaucoup de tensions et son intervention a contribué à les apaiser quelque peu », analyse le spécialiste.
La guerre en Iran, déclenchée le 28 février par les États-Unis et Israël, a par ailleurs fait craindre une extension du conflit dans le Caucase. Deux drones, probablement iraniens, ont touché l’exclave azerbaïdjanaise du Nakhitchevan le 5 mars, ravivant dans un premier temps les tensions entre les deux pays. Bakou a finalement décidé de calmer le jeu pour éviter l’escalade, Ilham Aliyev félicitant le nouveau guide suprême iranien après l’assassinat d’Ali Khamenei.
Une paix impossible
Le 8 août 2025, les deux dirigeants du Caucase ont signé à Washington un protocole d’accord, prémices d’un futur accord de paix évoqué depuis plusieurs mois. Ce texte prévoit la mise en place d’un corridor entre l’Azerbaïdjan et son exclave du Nakhitchevan, via l’Arménie : la « route Trump pour la paix internationale et la prospérité » (Tripp).
Ces échanges se sont concrétisés avec la visite, du 9 au 11 février, du vice-président états-unien J. D. Vance en Arménie et en Azerbaïdjan. Une visite fructueuse, conclue par la signature de plusieurs accords bilatéraux entre les États-Unis et les deux pays voisins. Elle symbolise également les changements de rapport de forces dans la région du Caucase du Sud, où Moscou, puissance et médiateur historique, est en perte de vitesse depuis la guerre en Ukraine, au profit de Washington.
Malgré ce regain de tensions, les discussions ont « apporté une sorte de stabilité dans la région, au moins à court et moyen terme », décrypte Tigran Grigoryan. Pourtant, les réfugiés du Haut-Karabakh rencontrés dans la capitale arménienne ont pour la plupart du mal à imaginer cette paix possible.
Au cœur d’Erevan, les Arméniens de l’Artsakh peuvent se retrouver au centre culturel Ararich, qui dispense aux enfants « des cours de dessin ou encore des ateliers de langue », explique Hunan Tadevosyan, son directeur. Si le lien avec leur terre d’origine est entretenu, le ressentiment et la douleur ne quittent pas les familles.
Dans les locaux de l’association, un grand drapeau du Haut-Karabakh est déployé. Sur les murs sont exposés les photos et les dessins de Tigran Avetisyan, un soldat arménien tué pendant la guerre. Sa mère les a légués à l’ONG et Hunan compte organiser une exposition pour les enfants.
« Je n’ai jamais vraiment quitté le Haut-Karabakh. Mentalement, je suis toujours là-bas », explique Lusine Minasyan, pendant que son fils joue avec d’autres enfants de réfugiés. Originaire de la région d’Askeran, foyer de résistance arménienne, elle a perdu son mari durant la guerre de 2020. À 38 ans, elle élève désormais seule son fils à Erevan. Dans le Haut-Karabakh, Lusine était professeure à l’université. Aujourd’hui, comme beaucoup de mères de famille, elle survit en préparant et vendant des pâtisseries typiques de sa région. « Ses baklavas sont les meilleures », assurent plusieurs parents présents au centre Ararich.
Impossible pour elle d’entendre parler d’une quelconque paix. « Comment je vais expliquer à mon fils qu’il va devoir vivre aux côtés de ceux qui ont tué son père », témoigne la mère de famille. Si la paix est signée, elle assure qu’elle quittera le pays.
Lusine Minasyan a perdu son mari pendant la guerre de 2020. Aujourd’hui, elle ne peut pas imaginer la paix avec ceux « qui ont tué le père de son fils ».
Marine Gabrielyan, elle aussi réfugiée du Haut-Karabakh, partage le même point de vue. « C’est irréel d’imaginer vivre avec les Azéris. Depuis mon enfance, j’ai perdu quasiment tous mes proches durant ces conflits », déplore la réfugiée. Durant la guerre de 2020, le plus âgé de ses trois fils a été blessé. Les deux femmes attendent les élections législatives de juin 2026 et espèrent un changement à la tête du pays.
« Il n’y a pas un seul mot sur nous »
Derrière le comptoir du Tumanyan’s Art, Vadim Balayan a un discours plus nuancé. Avec sa femme Kristen, ils tiennent ce café-restaurant où ils servent notamment plusieurs spécialités culinaires de leur région. Rencontré une première fois en janvier 2025, avant les accords de Washington, l’homme voyait dans les négociations de paix « un énième jeu politique », dans lequel l’Arménie « n’a d’autre choix que de signer la paix pour éviter une nouvelle guerre ».
Vadim Balayan, réfugié du Haut-Karabakh, dans le café-restaurant Tumanyan’s Art, qu’il tient aujourd’hui avec sa femme, Kristen, dans le centre d’Erevan.
Un an plus tard, avec l’avancée des négociations, il demande : « Comment pourrait-on passer à autre chose ? C’est notre vie, on ne peut pas l’oublier. » Si, selon lui, il est encore trop tôt pour tourner la page, il pointe surtout du doigt une forme de « déconnexion » au sein de la population arménienne : « Certains pensent que l’on peut encore retourner dans l’Artsakh ! »
Ce désarroi des réfugiés s’explique aussi par leur absence totale dans les négociations de paix. « Il n’y a pas un seul mot sur nous », regrette Siranush Sargsyan, journaliste originaire du Haut-Karabakh : « Comment pouvez-vous prétendre discuter de la paix et de la prospérité dans une région, en mettant de côté une partie des habitants de cette région ? C’est assez traumatisant pour nous, ils prétendent que ces gens n’existent pas.
D’autant que la plupart des réfugiés éprouvent une situation économique et sociale très tendue, avec des loyers très élevés, des difficultés à trouver un emploi combinées à la fin des aides versées par l’État.
Cette paix est totalement illusoire. On ne peut pas l’envisager si nous faisons tout ce que l’Azerbaïdjan veut.
« La principale faiblesse de cet accord est qu’il n’y a aucune réciprocité entre les deux parties, souligne Tigran Grigoryan, l’Arménie accepte toutes les demandes et les conditions de l’Azerbaïdjan. Il est nécessaire de trouver un terrain d’entente. » Le journaliste Siranush Sargsyan renchérit : « Cette paix est totalement illusoire. On ne peut pas l’envisager si nous faisons tout ce que l’Azerbaïdjan veut. »
« Ilham Aliyev fait son possible pour effacer toute trace de présence arménienne sur ce territoire », argue Altay Goyushov, historien azéri et directeur de l’Institut de recherche de Bakou. Le président azerbaïdjanais, qui dirige le pays d’une main de fer depuis plus de vingt ans, dicte aussi le rythme des discussions en posant des conditions que l’Arménie se voit obligée d’accepter pour espérer la paix. La demande la plus symbolique : qu’Erevan retire toute mention au Haut-Karabakh dans sa Constitution. À l’heure actuelle, la déclaration d’indépendance de l’Arménie, qui date de 1990 et est intégrée à la Constitution, fait référence à la « réunification » de l’Arménie et du Haut-Karabakh.
Ni guerre ni paix
Quel avenir imaginent alors les réfugiés ? Si la situation actuelle n’est pas en leur faveur, Lusine Minasyan reste optimiste : « Je n’ai pas tourné cette page, j’ai toujours l’espoir de revenir là-bas. » Lorsqu’elle évoque le futur, sa gorge se serre. « Je pense que la nouvelle génération nous ramènera dans le Haut-Karabakh. La seule demande de mon fils, c’est de pouvoir aller déposer des fleurs sur la tombe de son père », plaide-t-elle, émue.
Pour sa compatriote réfugiée Marine Gabrielyan, les discussions actuelles illustrent une nouvelle menace pour l’Arménie : « Il n’y a rien de nouveau dans ce projet de corridor, si ce n’est que ce qui s’est passé dans le Haut-Karabakh risque de se dérouler ici, dans le reste de l’Arménie. »
Pour Marine Gabrielyan, l’Azerbaïdjan pourrait dans les années à venir, lancer une offensive contre l’Arménie, comme il l’a fait pour reprendre le contrôle du Haut-Karabakh.
Un scénario impossible à anticiper, mais qui paraît plausible selon Altay Goyushov : « À court terme, tant que l’administration Trump est en place, je ne pense pas que l’Azerbaïdjan lancera une nouvelle guerre. Mais la propagande est toujours aussi présente dans le pays, l’Arménie est toujours dépeinte comme un ennemi. Le risque existe car le régime d’Ilham Aliyev est un régime autoritaire et qu’il est impossible de prédire ce qu’il va faire. »
D’autant que, selon l’historien azéri, Ilham Aliyev n’a pas besoin d’un accord de paix. « Cette situation où il n’y a pas de guerre et pas de paix convient très bien à son régime. Sa seule préoccupation est de conserver le pouvoir, et pour cela, il doit continuer d’alimenter le sentiment nationaliste », estime-t-il.
Pour conserver un semblant d’espoir, les réfugiés doivent « faire le nécessaire pour rester durablement en Arménie. C’est le minimum, et c’est un pas de plus vers un retour dans l’Artsakh ».
Difficile d’imaginer l’Arménie s’engager de nouveau dans un conflit armé après les défaites de 2020 et 2023. La position du gouvernement arménien semble même résolue. « Vous comprenez comme moi que si l’on ne referme pas le dossier du Haut-Karabakh, la paix est impossible », déclarait le Premier ministre Nikol Pachinian dans son discours à la nation le 18 août 2025.
« Je pense que la société est fatiguée de la guerre, analyse Tigran Grigoryan. L’Arménie ne semble pas avoir les ressources pour demander quelque chose de plus ambitieux. Comparée aux autres scénarios, notamment celui de l’escalade et des menaces de l’Azerbaïdjan sur l’ensemble du territoire national, il semblerait que ce soit la moins mauvaise des solutions. »
Mont Ararat depuis la Cascade à Erevan. Emblème de l’Arménie, le sommet se trouve à une cinquantaine de kilomètres au sud de la capitale, en Turquie.
Un point de vue réaliste mais difficile à accepter pour la majorité des réfugiés. Si elle ne croit pas dans la volonté azerbaïdjanaise de faire la paix, Siranush Sargsyan est consciente des marges de manœuvre limitées de l’Arménie. Pour conserver un semblant d’espoir, les réfugiés doivent « faire le nécessaire pour rester durablement en Arménie. C’est le minimum, et c’est un pas de plus vers un retour dans l’Artsakh », selon elle.
« L’Arménie a besoin de nous », affirme la journaliste avant de conclure : « Ce n’est pas juste un rêve d’y retourner. C’est notre droit. »
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U.N. Secretary-General’s envoy arrives in Iran
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ personal envoy has arrived in Iran as part of a regional tour aimed at supporting efforts toward a comprehensive and durable resolution to the Iran war, and is also expected to visit key mediator Pakistan, the United Nations said on Wednesday.
Jean Arnault will hear Iran’s perspectives on the way forward and reiterate Guterres’ commitment to supporting a peaceful settlement, according to a U.N. statement.
Arnault also called on all leaders to choose the path of peaceful resolution and the protection of civilians, the statement said.
Published by Armenpress, original at
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From Digital Integration to AI: How the SRC is transforming the tax and custom
The State Revenue Committee (SRC) continues the deep modernization of the tax and customs systems by combining digitalization, international integration, and the use of artificial intelligence. The goal of these processes is to create a fast, predictable, and reliable environment that will support business development and increase Armenia’s investment attractiveness.
Within the framework of the Doing Digital Forum 2026, SRC Chairman Eduard Hakobyan spoke to Armenpress and addressed the substance of the ongoing reforms and the expected outcomes.
Armenpress: The SRC has now entered a phase where it is actively working toward the digital integration of tax and customs systems with other countries. In practical terms, what does this process involve, which countries are the priority targets, and what final outcome is expected?
Hakobyan: In recent years—and especially since 2025—the exchange of information for tax purposes has been carried out electronically, making the process significantly faster and more efficient. A specially encrypted system has also been launched with the tax authority of the Russian Federation, which is planned to be extended across CIS countries.
At the same time, as a member of international organizations, Armenia has aligned its information exchange systems with international standards, ensuring their security and reliability. In 2025, the work carried out in this area was completed with high evaluations, significantly enhancing Armenia’s reputation as a reliable partner.
The digitalization of the automatic exchange of financial account information has also been successfully implemented, in line with international standards. In 2025, automatic information exchange took place with 47 countries.
In terms of digital integration of tax systems, there are plans to create a unified, integrated system for document exchange among economic operators engaged in cross-border trade. All required documents and their exchange will be fully automated and converted into electronic format. Essentially, a single shared database of exchanged documents will be established. The system is envisaged to be created for the member states of the EAEU, with the possibility of including other countries in the future.
Digital integration is a key component of the “digital customs” model and implies not merely the digitization of paper-based processes, but real-time synchronization of data between states. This enables risk assessment to be conducted before goods reach the border, allowing compliant businesses to complete border crossings within minutes.
Regarding the integration of customs information, it is planned to introduce the provision of advance data on foreign economic activity (FEA) transactions, in order to make subsequent procedures faster and more efficient. In the initial phase, this process will involve Armenia’s neighboring countries—Georgia and Iran—with which it shares land borders. Later, it may also be extended to FEA conducted via air transport.
Armenpress: The increased transparency in international taxation is often perceived as a challenge for businesses. In your view, what advantages will compliant taxpayers and foreign investors gain as a result of these reforms, and how will this transform Armenia’s attractiveness?
Hakobyan: In today’s business environment, competitiveness is impossible without adopting international standards. Armenia is consistently developing its tax system by expanding double taxation avoidance agreements, implementing transfer pricing mechanisms, and introducing tools aligned with international standards for resolving tax disputes. The first advance pricing agreement has also been concluded, which is considered one of the key instruments of tax transparency.
All of this creates a predictable and reliable environment, enhances the country’s investment attractiveness, and ensures clear rules of the game for businesses. Another important direction is the development of mutual recognition with EAEU countries, which contributes to simplifying import and export processes.
Armenpress: The digitalization of the customs sector implies a significant acceleration of border crossing procedures. What specific digital tools or solutions will most effectively reduce the time and financial costs for businesses engaged in foreign trade?
Hakobyan: The digitalization of the customs sector makes it possible to significantly accelerate all border crossing and customs clearance processes, reduce time and financial costs for businesses, and ensure greater predictability. The State Revenue Committee of Armenia has already introduced—and plans to further implement—a range of digital solutions that cover the entire process chain, from the submission of preliminary information to the release of goods.
One of these solutions is the “Single Window” system, which allows businesses to submit all required data to various government agencies through a single platform.
Another planned solution is the Pre-arrival Processing system, which enables the submission of cargo information before it reaches the border.
Among the key tools are also AI/ML-based risk management systems, as well as a unified customs account, which will allow all customs payments to be made online through a single account.
In addition, there are plans for the full digitalization of operations at land border crossing points, including the automation of border procedures such as:
automatic identification of vehicles integration of weighing and scanning systems automatic data exchange with other government agencies
An electronic queue management system (e-Queue) for outbound traffic from Armenia is also part of the planned solutions. Its implementation is expected to eliminate congestion and queues at exit points and increase the predictability of the process.
The combined implementation of these solutions is expected to accelerate, simplify, and improve the management of the entire process, while significantly reducing both time and financial costs for businesses engaged in foreign trade.
Armenpress: The SRC is already applying AI tools in tax administration, and their introduction in the customs sector is also planned. What results have already been recorded, and which specific problems will AI address in customs processes?
Hakobyan: AI tools are already being used in tax administration to identify high-risk taxpayers. The system analyzes large volumes of data and detects anomalies, which then serve as a basis for planning audits.
In the customs sector, it is planned to introduce a “smart” risk management system that will analyze not only individual transactions but also the entire history of the economic operator.
AI will also be used for preventive purposes—flagging potential errors and risks in advance—as well as in the analysis of X-ray images.
Armenpress: What steps does Armenia need to take to become a technological and logistics hub, and what is the role of the State Revenue Committee (SRC)?
Hakobyan: Recently, the State Revenue Committee (SRC) has implemented a number of important reforms, including automated customs clearance, electronic notifications, 24/7 export operations, and a comprehensive modernization of risk management systems. I have already discussed the planned digital customs reforms in previous answers.
In the near future, customs and logistics centers will be established in Yerevan and Syunik, combining all services in a single location and reducing clearance times. At the same time, the Agarak and Bagratashen border points are being modernized to increase their capacity.
These measures are aimed at creating a fast, efficient, and technology-driven environment that will strengthen Armenia’s position as a regional logistics hub.
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On April 8, Yerevan will host the Doing Digital Forum (DDF), the premier event for digital transformation and financial technology, for the fourth consecutive year. Under the theme “Bridging Platforms and Economies,” the forum will bring together top local and international experts, business leaders, and public sector decision-makers.
The forum is organized by SPRING PR Company, with Visa serving as the Innovation Partner, imID as the Digital Identity Partner, aeda as the Blockchain Partner and Zangezur Copper Molybdenum Combine as the Industrial Transformation Partner, and Freedom Broker Armenia as the Investment Partner.
Since its launch in 2023, the DDF has brought together more than 60 distinguished speakers and over 3,000 participants from Armenia, the United Kingdom, the United States, the UAE, Germany, Australia, and CIS countries.
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DDF 2026 explores Armenia as digital hub and new economic bridge amid global t
Doing Digital Forum (DDF) 2026 has kicked off in Yerevan, bringing together top local and international experts, business leaders, and public sector decision-makers. The premier event for digital transformation and financial technology is being held under this year’s theme, “Bridging Platforms and Economies.”
Tatevik Simonyan, co-founder of SPRING PR, the forum’s organizer, highlighted in her opening remarks how geopolitical and economic shifts are breaking old connections, and how digital technologies are becoming key to creating new economic “bridges” in this rapidly changing world.
“For the fourth consecutive year, we are coming together around the same idea—discussing the digital world. Since its launch in 2023, the forum has brought together more than 60 distinguished speakers and over 3,000 participants from various countries and continents. In 2023, we talked about how digital transformation is the number-one imperative of our time, anticipating the events and epic changes without which it is now impossible to imagine the functioning of many sectors. In 2024, we redefined and reaffirmed the need to keep pace with these rapid transformations and, in some ways, even to harness them. In 2025, the forum’s central theme focused on one of the most influential and complex phenomena shaping human history—money and its future—which was discussed in the context of all possible scenarios. This year, the theme of DDF 26 perfectly reflects our overarching concept: “Bridging Platforms and Economies,” said Simonyan.
Tatevik Simonyan emphasized that humanity is living in a period when geopolitics is being reshaped “before our eyes”, and the “tectonic shifts” taking place are changing not only the balance of power but the very logic of connections between economies.
“The bridges that have connected the world for centuries or decades are literally burning today. Economic ties are breaking, logistics chains are being reorganized, and traditional routes are being closed or redefined. If old connections are destroyed and bridges burned, then who, where, and how will build the new ones? One of the most modern and powerful answers is digital: today, digital technologies are changing not only business but also the ways economies are interconnected, building new bridges. These changes are occurring amid global competition, economic fragmentation, and rapid technological progress,” Simonyan said.
According to the co-founder of SPRING PR, over the years, the forum’s themes, areas of discussion, participant geography, and speakers have evolved, but the emphasis has remained the same: positioning Armenia as an innovative hub for digital transformation.
“Today, this mission takes on a new emphasis because we are not only talking about a digital hub but also about Armenia as a new bridge—a bridge that can connect not only regions but also different economic systems, financial flows, and technological ecosystems,” Simonyan added.
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DDF 2026: Government highlights strategic focus on digital economy and society
Armenia’s Minister of High-Tech Industry, Mkhitar Hayrapetyan, emphasized during the Doing Digital Forum 2026 that developing a trust-based digital economy and a digital society is a strategic priority for the government.
“We are convinced that one of the key prerequisites for enhancing our national resilience and ensuring the stable, sustainable development of our economy is an environment of open, transparent, secure, and protected data, along with the necessary infrastructure and trust,” said Hayrapetyan.
He added, “If someone asked me whether it is possible to define digitalization or digital transformation in a single phrase, I personally could not do so, and I am not even confident that artificial intelligence could fully convey it to the public. First of all, the government envisions digitalization as a way to make life easier for citizens, create a trustworthy and predictable environment for the private sector and businesses, protect citizens’ data, develop infrastructure, and, why not, provide a new environment for the growth of technology and innovation.”
The minister also noted that the government has been implementing large-scale, multifaceted reforms in collaboration with the private sector for several years to advance this agenda.
Doing Digital Forum (DDF) 2026, organized by SPRING PR, kicked off in Yerevan on Wednesday, bringing together top local and international experts, business leaders, and public sector decision-makers. The premier event for digital transformation and financial technology is being held under this year’s theme, “Bridging Platforms and Economies.”
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