Armenpress: Armenian Foreign Ministry Secretary General presents concept of th

Armenia22:06, 18 March 2026
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The Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, David Karapetyan, received the heads of diplomatic missions and representatives of international organizations accredited in Armenia, the foreign ministry said in a readout.

The Secretary General presented the concept of the third “Yerevan Dialogue” international forum, scheduled to take place on May 5–6, and provided an overview of the ongoing preparations for the event.

The participants were also briefed on the “Yerevan Dialogue Young Fellows 2026” initiative, to be organized within the framework of the forum.

Views were exchanged on the concept of the forum, as well as on possible formats of participation.

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Verelq: Iran announced massive strikes on Israel

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced massive strikes on Israeli territory in response to the death of Ali Larijani, the former secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.


The operation, which received the name “True Promise 4”, became the 61st wave of retaliatory operations since the beginning of the conflict, the media reports.


According to the IRPC, more than 100 targets, including military and power facilities, were damaged in central Tel Aviv. The corps emphasized that the missiles overcame the Israeli air defense system without any obstacles. According to the estimates of the IRPC, more than 230 soldiers of the enemy were killed or wounded as a result of the strikes. Along with Tel Aviv, facilities in Jerusalem, Hafa port, Be’er Sheva and the Negev desert were attacked.

The fate of Edita Gzoyan has already been decided

“Hraparak” newspaper writes: “The fate of Edita Gzoyan, who resigned from the position of director of the Armenian Genocide Institute due to a scandal, has already been decided. will remain at the museum-institute as an ordinary researcher, although there were rumors that he might occupy the position of deputy director.


As a matter of fact, the authorities have decided to punish Gzoyan with full severity and deprive him of holding a leadership position. We learned from the staff that Gzoyan went on vacation after the well-known incidents, he worked almost without rest during his years as a director and has accumulated a long vacation. They say he will return to work in May, but he is in a depressed state.

For Iran, this war is not only a challenge, but also an opportunity

In Iran, this war is viewed not only as a difficult challenge, but also as an opportunity for that country in terms of post-war conditions.


In this context, the Strait of Hormuz is considered an extremely important factor. If until today there was talk inside Iran almost exclusively at the expert level about changing the conditions of navigation through the strait in favor of Tehran, today the Foreign Minister of Iran also announced this.


In an interview with the Qatari “Al-Jazeera” television station, he specifically noted that the regulations of the Strait of Hormuz and the passage through it should be drawn up in such a way that they function to ensure peaceful navigation, taking into account the interests of Iran and the region.


Under this very diplomatic wording, Iran apparently understands taking over the management of the Strait of Hormuz and security in the post-war Middle East, which is actually being carried out by Tehran at this very moment.

Iranologist Vardan Voskanyan




The stepmother abused the 1-year-old child for about 2 months

In Arabkir administrative district, in the cases of severe physical pain caused as a result of regularly exerted physical influence on a 1-year-old child from January 22 to March 10, 2026 inclusive, as well as cases of illegal deprivation of life on March 15, the prosecutor initiated a public criminal prosecution against the second wife of the child’s father, according to Article 196, Part 2, Clause 3 and Article 44-155 of the Criminal Code. with clause 3 of part 2. This was reported by the Prosecutor’s Office.


A motion was filed with the court to elect custody as a restraining order.


On March 16, an extraordinary incident took place in Ararat region. After midnight, a boy was taken to the Yerevan “Arabkir” medical center with a diagnosis of “clinical death”. The police of Arabkir found out that the one taken to the hospital is Aleksan M., aged 1 year and 2 months, and according to operative information, the child was beaten by one of his parents. The child was abused by his stepmother.


The Investigative Committee reported that the investigation department of the RA Investigative Committee of the city of Yerevan in connection with the incident of violence against a child with the features of attempted murder. criminal proceedings have been initiated. During the preliminary investigation, 1 person was arrested. The child is still in the intensive care unit.

Saint Michael was allowed to participate in liturgies

The leader of Shirak Diocese, Archbishop Mikael Adjapahyan, will continue to remain under house arrest, the Court of Appeal rejected the petition of the Holy Father’s defenders.


However, the bishop was allowed to participate in the Holy and Immortal Liturgies and receive Holy Communion.


Saint Michael was forbidden to celebrate Liturgy and give a sermon.

It is proposed to reform the Criminal Procedure Code

The purpose of the Criminal Procedure Code, which entered into force on July 1, 2022, is to establish an effective procedure for conducting proceedings on alleged crimes based on guaranteeing the rights and freedoms of the person.


As such, the implementation of an efficient and quality pre-trial investigation stems from this very goal. It should be noted that the presence of somewhat problematic provisions in the Criminal Procedure Code, which has been in use for about three years, has created additional obstacles, which the draft law aims to eliminate. Rustam Bakoyan, Deputy Chairman of the Standing Committee on Human Rights Protection and Public Affairs of the National Assembly of the RA National Assembly, said this while presenting the “Amendments and Amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Armenia” at the regular session of the National Assembly on March 18. on” draft law.


The author of the initiative, Rustam Bakoyan, presented the proposed additions and changes and noted that as a result of the adoption of the project, it is expected to create additional prerequisites for the more efficient implementation of criminal procedure functions.

It was noted that the project will regulate specific time and procedural issues in criminal proceedings, which is aimed at effective, complete, comprehensive and objective examination of criminal proceedings. In addition, the project is also expected to create an opportunity for the body conducting the criminal proceedings to complete the proceedings within its jurisdiction within a reasonable period of time.


Deputy Minister of Justice Gevorg Kocharyan presented the Government’s positive opinion on the project.


The commission voted in favor of the initiative. It is planned to be included in the draft agenda of the upcoming regular sessions of the National Assembly.

The mandatory requirement to publish notices in print media will be removed

A project is circulating in Armenia, which envisages the abolition of notifications, the mandatory requirement to publish information resulting from documentary publications of a different nature in the print media.


The draft proposes to replace the mandatory publication requirement in the print media with the publication of public notices on the official website of “azdarar.am” or on the website of this or that organization.


According to Minister of Justice Srbuhi Galyan, this change is due to the development of information technologies and the fact that the print media has lost its previous distribution and role.


“The process of publication in the print media is quite expensive, all this leads to the actual limitation of information for the general public and additional costs, therefore, publications in the print media cannot currently be considered an effective or accessible way to disseminate information,” Galyan said at the session of the Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs.


According to the minister, the review of the existing regulations also stems from the need to harmonize the legal framework along with the development of information technologies.


The commission gave a positive conclusion to the package of drafts on making amendments and additions to the laws “On public and individual notification on the Internet” and attached.

Red Wings will start Orenburg-Yerevan-Orenburg flights

The Red Wings airline will start operating flights on the Orenburg-Yerevan-Orenburg route from June 4, the airline’s press service reports.


“The flights will be carried out by Russian SSJ-100 planes once a week during the summer season,” the message states.


The airline also informed that the departure from Orenburg will take place on Thursdays at 11:10, the duration of the flight to the capital of Armenia will be 3 hours and 5 minutes, and the return flight will depart from Yerevan at 14:05.


Orenburg has become the seventh city of the airline’s route network from which direct flights to Armenia are available. Red Wings currently operates flights to Yerevan from Sochi, Mineralnye Vody, Samara, Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan and Chelyabinsk.

After growth, decline. Armenia’s exports and imports have decreased

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Armenia’s exports and imports fell by 13.5% (y/y) and 11.2% (y/y) in January, respectively, after strong growth in the last two months of 2025.


This is mentioned in the “Armenia Monthly Economic Update – March 2026” report of the World Bank.


“Exports decreased as a result of a 45.1% decrease in precious and semi-precious stones, as well as a 69.1% decrease in household appliances, which was due to a decrease in re-exports. The export volumes of other product groups, such as semi-finished products (16% drop) and animal products (23.8% drop) were also reduced. The main positive contribution was provided by mineral products, the export of which increased by 43%,” the research notes.


WB analysts point out that imports decreased by 11.2%, again due to a 63.3% drop in precious and semi-precious stones, a 42.7% drop in home appliances, and a 25.7% reduction in vehicle imports.


The report notes that in January, excluding trade in precious metals and stones and household appliances, exports increased by 8% (y/y), while imports remained at the same level.


According to the RA Statistical Committee, in January 2026, Armenia’s foreign trade turnover amounted to 1.28 billion dollars, decreasing by 12% compared to January 2025, while exports amounted to 463.9 million dollars and imports to 811.8 million dollars.