Opposition leader Gagik Tsarukian on Thursday linked his imprisonment to the alleged rigging of last month’s parliamentary elections and said it will not stop his political activities.
Meanwhile, Armenian law-enforcement authorities arrested another opposition politician who ran in the June 7 elections on the ticket of Tsarukian’s Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK). Aregnaz Manukian is prosecuted as part of a high treason case against Andranik Tevanian, who was second on the list of the BHK’s election candidates.
Tevanian was arrested on May 22 two days after Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian announced espionage charges against him during an election campaign rally. The Investigative Committee claims that he was recruited by a foreign, presumably Russian, intelligence service two years ago.
According to it, he was paid $622,000 to supply state secrets, including confidential details of a closed-door parliamentary hearing on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border demarcation held in April 2024. Unlike Tevanian, who had resigned from the parliament in August 2023, Manukian still held a parliament seat at the time.
She is now accused of disclosing classified information provided to lawmakers during the hearing. She denies the accusation. Manukian claimed that she does not remember attending the hearing after investigators searched her apartment and questioned her as a witness late last month.
The outspoken oppositionist was among Tsarukian supporters who rallied outside a court building in Yerevan on Tuesday to show support for the BHK leader following his arrest on fraud and money laundering charges strongly denied by him.
The BHK was one of the three main opposition groups that challenged the ruling Civil Contract party in the June 7 elections. Pashinian repeatedly pledged to “bring on their knees” and “take out” their top leaders during the election campaign.
These and other opposition contenders refuse to accept the official election results that gave victory to Civil Contract. In particular, they point to the Central Election Commission’s extraordinary decision to cancel the results in three precincts but not rerun the ballot there. The decision appears to have prevented the BHK from clearing a 4 percent vote threshold for being represented in the new Armenian parliament.
“Despite all the blows and attacks, the BHK garnered enough votes to enter the National Assembly,” Tsarukian said in a statement released from prison. “A simple theft took place before your very eyes. By an arbitrary decision of the current authorities, an entire faction was not allowed to be in the National Assembly.”
“The obviously false, fabricated case brough against me is a continuation of all this,” he claimed.
“The decisions of the Central Election Commission and the Constitutional Court, criminal cases, and detention cannot change my thinking or my value system,” added Tsarukian.
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RFE/RL – Baku Repeats Key Precondition For Peace Deal With Yerevan
The signing of an Armenian-Azerbaijani peace treaty initialed in Washington last August remains conditional on a change of Armenia’s constitution, Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov reiterated on Thursday.
“Our expectation is that territorial claims against Azerbaijan will be removed from the Armenian constitution. After that, a peace agreement can be signed,” Azerbaijani news agencies quoted Bayramov as saying.
Azerbaijan specifically objects to a preamble to the current constitution referring to a 1990 Armenian declaration of independence, which in turn cites a 1989 unification act adopted by the legislative bodies of Soviet Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh. The only legal way to remove that reference is to adopt a new constitution through a referendum.
While rejecting the Azerbaijani precondition in public, Prime Minister Pashinian has repeatedly called for the kind of constitutional change that is demanded by Baku. Pashinian said on Thursday that he has a popular mandate to enact such a change after his Civil Contract party’s victory in last month’s parliamentary elections rejected as fraudulent by the Armenian opposition.
The current constitution also stipulates that the draft of a new constitution must be approved by at least two-thirds of the parliament deputies before being put on a referendum. Civil Contract fell short of such a majority in the June 7 elections.
Pashinian did not clarify just how he is planning to overcome this hurdle. He said only that the composition of Armenia’s new parliament does not allow the new constitution’s adoption “solely through intra-parliamentary mechanisms.”
“We need to analyze the situation and take a position on the issue,” he told journalists.
Some Armenian opposition figures and commentators have speculated that Pashinian could hold the referendum without the draft constitution’s mandatory parliamentary approval. In what they see as a related development, Civil Contract hastily pushed through the outgoing parliament earlier this week a bill that will effectively strip hundreds of thousands of Armenians living abroad of their voting rights.
Under Armenian law, a new constitution has to be backed by at least one-quarter of the country’s 2.5 million or so eligible voters. The total number of the voters should decrease considerably after the mass disenfranchisement of expats. The ruling party will thus need fewer votes to adopt the constitution that was drafted by the Armenian government early this year but has still not been made public.
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Israeli defence minister says military ready to resume operations against Iran
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has said the Israeli military is prepared to launch further strikes against Iran if necessary to eliminate threats.
The Times of Israel reported the remarks.
“The Israel Defense Forces are ready to resume the campaign in Iran. If it becomes necessary to continue the strikes, we will do so with even greater force,” Katz said.
Over the past two nights, the United States has carried out another round of strikes against Iran. In response, Iran launched attacks against U.S. military facilities in Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan.
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Azerbaijan has completed its part of work on peace agreement with Armenia, Bay
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov said Azerbaijan has completed its part of the work on finalizing a peace agreement with Armenia, while border delimitation and demarcation efforts between the two countries continue.
According to Azerbaijan’s APA news agency, Bayramov said the commissions established for the delimitation and demarcation process continue their work on a regular basis.
“We have already seen the first positive results of this process. Around 13 kilometers of the state border have been delimited,” he said.
Bayramov added that the sides have also reached a number of agreements under which the delimitation process will continue from north to south and issues related to the enclave villages will be addressed.
At the same time, the Azerbaijani foreign minister reiterated Baku’s position that, before a peace agreement can be signed, Armenia must remove what Azerbaijan describes as provisions containing territorial claims against Azerbaijan from its Constitution.
Bayramov also commented on road and railway projects, saying work in that direction is continuing.
According to him, one of the key outcomes of the Washington Summit on August 8, 2025, was the agreement concerning the section passing through Armenian territory, a process that is also supported by the United States.
“Negotiations in this direction are under way between the United States and Armenia. At the same time, the entry and exit points of the TRIPP project are located in Azerbaijan. Our U.S. partners have informed us that the process is continuing and that the relevant documents are currently being prepared,” Bayramov said.
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Pashinyan comments on meeting with Mishustin in Yekaterinburg
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has commented on his meeting with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in Yekaterinburg.
Speaking to reporters at the Government on July 9, Pashinyan described the talks with his Russian counterpart as open, frank and friendly.
“A number of agreements were reached, but I do not wish to disclose their details at this stage. Let us wait until they are implemented, and you will see the results yourselves,” Pashinyan said.
Pashinyan and Mishustin met in Yekaterinburg on July 6 on the sidelines of the INNOPROM International Industrial Exhibition.
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Pashinyan says he will spend his vacation in Armenia
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said he will spend his vacation in Armenia.
Speaking to reporters on July 9, Pashinyan said he would remain engaged, as necessary, on certain issues, including regional developments.
“There will be certain issues, including regional ones, in which I will remain involved on a daily basis whenever necessary,” he said.
Earlier, the Armenian government announced that Pashinyan will be on vacation from July 10 through July 29, inclusive.
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Adoption of new Constitution is part of our election commitments, Pashinyan sa
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said the adoption of a new Constitution remains one of the political commitments of the government, noting that the initiative was included in the election platform of the ruling Civil Contract party.
Speaking to reporters on July 9, Pashinyan stressed that voters had also endorsed that agenda.
“The agenda of constitutional change is included in the election platform of Armenia’s ruling majority, and that is a fact. The platform states the need to adopt a new Constitution, and the people voted in favor of it. Another matter is that the balance of forces in parliament is not such that constitutional amendments can be adopted through the procedure currently prescribed. Nevertheless, this agenda exists, it is one of our election commitments, and we must continue to define our position on this issue,” Pashinyan said.
The prime minister also commented on the timeline for publishing the draft of the new Constitution, saying the delay was due to proposals submitted by members of the ruling party’s board.
“We decided to postpone the deadline for submitting proposals until after the elections so that they could be discussed calmly. The proposals have been reviewed, and only one remains. Once that proposal is discussed, we will publish the text. I believe this will happen before the end of the year,” Pashinyan said.
Parliamentary elections were held in Armenia on June 7. The 9th National Assembly will comprise three political forces: the ruling Civil Contract party with 64 seats, the Strong Armenia alliance with 29 seats, and the Armenia Alliance with 12 seats.
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We cannot say we are abandoning the enclaves-exclaves issue, Pashinyan says
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has responded to Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov’s remarks on the issue of enclaves and exclaves.
Bayramov had earlier said that the two sides had reached a number of understandings on border delimitation, under which the process would continue from north to south, while issues related to enclave villages would also be resolved.
Speaking to reporters after a government meeting on July 9, Pashinyan stressed that all unresolved issues must eventually be addressed.
“I have spoken about the issue of enclaves and exclaves, including during the election campaign. We must resolve all outstanding issues, and I would like to remind you that we also have a clear interest in this matter, because the village of Artsvashen, which has exclave status, remains under Azerbaijan’s control despite being part of Armenia’s sovereign territory under the principles set out in the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration. I cannot say that we are abandoning, or could abandon, the enclaves-exclaves issue. No, we must move forward and find a solution. What that solution will be is a matter for discussion. We have moved the issue into a framework where it will not generate additional tensions, including for external use. The issue exists and must be addressed in accordance with the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration and the maps that serve as the basis for the delimitation process,” Pashinyan said.
He added that there are two possible approaches to resolving the issue.
“The first option is for the territory to remain an enclave or exclave belonging to the state to which it legally belongs. The second option is for us to reach an agreement and, for example, distribute equivalent territories along the border or make adjustments in specific areas. These procedures are provided for under both Armenian legislation and the Constitution, and we must address the issue accordingly,” he said.
Pashinyan also drew attention to what he described as an important detail. He said that only about a month or a month and a half ago he had learned that Azerbaijani banknotes and passports depict a map of Azerbaijan in which Artsvashen is shown in a different colour and marked as an enclave, indicating that it is not part of Azerbaijan.
“This is a very important nuance, and I believe we should adopt a reciprocal approach in order to treat the relevant maps under the Alma-Ata Declaration accurately, because that follows from our agreements and from the text of the initialled peace agreement. This is an important fact that should shape our policies, our attitude and our position, because we must understand one essential point: we should not be guided by the logic that whoever controls a territory owns it. Instead, we should be guided by the logic of the peace agreement,” Pashinyan said.
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Iran’s president thanks Armenia for solidarity, pledges stronger bilateral ti
President Masoud Pezeshkian
Tehran, IRNA – Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has expressed gratitude to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan for attending the farewell ceremony for the martyred Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, and conveying condolences on behalf of the Armenian government and people.
In a message posted on X on Wednesday, Pezeshkian commended Pashinyan and the accompanying high-ranking delegation, saying Iran would not forget Armenia’s goodwill and gesture of solidarity.
The president voiced hope that the long-standing friendly relations between Iran and Armenia, built on shared interests, good neighborliness, and mutual respect, would continue to expand.
Pezeshkian also said the martyred Leader consistently emphasized strengthening ties with Armenia, describing the country as a noble neighbor, and reaffirmed Iran’s commitment to enhancing comprehensive bilateral cooperation.
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OPINION – Geopolitics of memory: Why Israel turned to the Armenian question no
- Ramzy Baroud is a journalist, author, and editor of The Palestine Chronicle.
In October 2019, the US House of Representatives voted 405-11 to adopt House Resolution 296, declaring it US policy to commemorate the “Armenian ‘Genocide’ through official recognition and remembrance” and to “reject efforts” associating the United States with its denial. Less than two years later, President Joe Biden became the first American president in decades to formally use the term “genocide” in an official presidential statement.
By then, relations between Washington and Ankara had deteriorated sharply over Türkiye’s role in Syria, its purchase of the Russian S-400 missile defense system, and broader disagreements over regional security. These developments drove the congressional vote and Biden’s subsequent recognition, creating the geopolitical backdrop that finally made this supposedly “moral” position politically possible.
The contradiction became even more striking after October 2023. The same administration that had positioned itself as a moral arbiter on historical controversies became Israel’s principal military, diplomatic, and financial backer of the genocide in Gaza. Although international bodies, UN experts, human rights groups, and genocide scholars documented the reality of Israel’s extermination campaign, Washington dismissed the “genocide” characterization and continued to supply Tel Aviv with weapons and diplomatic cover. This was not merely a disagreement over legal terminology. It reflected a broader pattern in which the language of universal morality appeared remarkably flexible when applied to allies, especially Israel.
Meanwhile, the human toll continued to mount. The official figures released by Gaza’s health authorities document more than 73,000 deaths, while a widely discussed analysis published in The Lancet argued that the eventual mortality—including indirect deaths caused by hunger, disease, displacement, and the destruction of Gaza’s healthcare system—could reach 186,000 or even higher, or nearly 8% of Gaza’s population.
Gaza factor in Tel Aviv’s pivot
Against that backdrop came another extraordinary political development. On June 28, 2026, the Israeli Cabinet unanimously approved Foreign Minister Gideon Saar’s proposal to formally recognize what they term the “genocide committed against the Armenian people during the final years of the Ottoman Empire” and to firmly condemn any “denial, minimization, or distortion of historical truth,” pending final legislative approval. For decades, successive Israeli governments has deliberately avoided such language because it did not suit their strategic interests. The reasons were well known: preserving relations with Türkiye, maintaining strategic cooperation with Azerbaijan, and avoiding unnecessary regional friction.
Those calculations have now changed. Relations between Israel and Türkiye have collapsed to their lowest point in decades. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has emerged as one of Israel’s most vocal international critics over the Gaza genocide. Ankara has supported international legal initiatives against Israel, sharply curtailed bilateral relations, and increasingly positioned itself as an advocate for Palestinian rights in international forums.
On Gaza, Türkiye remains one of Israel’s strongest critics. Turkish civil society, in particular, continues to be among the most active worldwide, consistently mobilizing humanitarian aid, organizing mass protests, and supporting various international legal and grassroots initiatives designed to break the siege of Gaza and challenge Israeli actions on the global stage.
Meanwhile, Türkiye’s expanding regional influence runs directly counter to Israel’s geopolitical agenda, which remains tethered to conflict, war, and colonial expansion. In Syria, Ankara has consistently argued that long-term stability depends upon preserving the country’s territorial integrity and rebuilding state institutions, while Israel has invested in expanding its military footprint and deepening ties with secessionist groups and minorities. The two countries now view Syria through fundamentally different strategic lenses. Concerning Iran, Türkiye has repeatedly opposed military escalation and emphasized diplomacy even as Israel has advocated a far more confrontational approach. Ankara has maintained communication channels across regional divides, positioning itself as a diplomatic actor rather than a participant in military confrontation.
Why Israel fears a stable Caucasus
Perhaps most importantly, Türkiye has continued pursuing normalization with Armenia despite decades of mutual distrust. Although progress has been gradual, discussions over reopening borders, restoring transport links, expanding trade, and normalizing diplomatic relations represent one of the most significant opportunities for long-term stability in the South Caucasus. Such normalization would not simply improve bilateral relations; it could reshape regional connectivity between Europe and Asia while reducing one of the region’s oldest geopolitical fault lines.
Israel’s recent move is most likely intended to influence that process as its timing inevitably raises questions. Diplomatic decisions rarely occur in a political vacuum, particularly when they reverse decades of carefully maintained policy. Indeed, for Israel, closer Turkish-Armenian ties are entirely unacceptable. For decades, Israeli foreign policy in the South Caucasus has banked on a perpetual feud—a fractured regional landscape that Tel Aviv could actively exploit.
The Israeli strategy aligns perfectly with long-standing Israeli geopolitical doctrines, most notably encapsulated by the Yinon Plan. Authored in 1982 by Oded Yinon, then-advisor to the Israeli Foreign Ministry, this strategic blueprint argued that Israel’s regional dominance depends entirely upon the deliberate fragmentation, balkanization, and sectarian division of surrounding nations into smaller, weak, and manageable hostile enclaves.
If Türkiye succeeds in fully normalizing ties with Armenia, Israel will lose a critical building block of this regional strategy. A stable, cooperative South Caucasus deprives Tel Aviv of a geopolitical fracture line it has long weaponized to project its power, leaving its policy of sowing chaos, division, and international conflict structurally weakened.
Blurring the lines: Distraction as state policy
There is another vital dimension to Israel’s sudden pivot, and it is also related to Gaza. As the international community is forced to confront the grim reality of the Israeli genocide in Gaza, Benjamin Netanyahu and his extremist coalition government are desperate to dilute these facts. By suddenly pushing for Armenian recognition, they hope to shift global diplomatic attention, spark manufactured controversy, and weaponize historical memory to deflect attention from the genuine genocide Tel Aviv is committing today.
This cynical policy of manufacturing false historical parallels is a strategy that Israel has utilized for decades. Following every major massacre it has carried out against Palestinians, Lebanese, and other regional populations, Tel Aviv has systematically reached for historical distractions to blur the lines of contemporary accountability.
Ultimately, one cannot ignore the palpable element of desperation in this behavior. The current Israeli government is arguably the most isolated in the nation’s history, facing unprecedented international legal scrutiny and eroding global legitimacy. In this state of acute isolation, Israel is burning through its last remaining diplomatic cards to lash out against its critics. Given these stakes, Türkiye and Armenia must find their common ground directly. Neither the United States nor Israel genuinely cares about the future of the Armenian people, or about their past. These geostrategic ploys are not acts of “moral awakening”; they are calculated maneuvers designed to sow fragmentation, chaos, and perpetual regional dependency.
*Opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Anadolu.
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