EU Ambassador Vassilis Maragos: Armenia can be at the heart of European develo

Maral Takmazian
MediaMax, Armenia
July 8 2026

EU Ambassador Vassilis Maragos: Armenia can be at the heart of European developments

Armenia is going through a pivotal moment in its modern history, seeking to redefine its geopolitical position, deepen ties with the European Union, and navigate growing regional and domestic challenges. For Vassilis Maragos, the Head of EU Delegation to Armenia, EU Ambassador, the significance of the moment goes beyond diplomacy.“Armenia sent an important message to Europe,” he said in an exclusive interview with three European media outlets.

 

– You recently said EU-Armenia relations are closer than ever before. Does this bring Armenia closer to a European future, at least in some sectors? And how does the EU plan to help Armenia strengthen its economy and reduce possible risks linked to its past dependence on Russia?

 

We launched a process of strengthening Armenia-EU relations in all their dimensions. That was a task given to us by the leaders of the EU Member States in the European Council.  Based on that, we have been engaging with Armenia in trying to identify what we can do together. This has already led us to launch several flagship projects with Armenia in the last three years.  

The main tool we have been using is the €270 million Resilience and Growth Plan. This was announced in April 2024 and is now close to implementation. The plan aims to strengthen Armenia’s resilience in the economic field, in the energy field, in society, and also to strengthen support for the private sector and infrastructure.

 

– What does that mean in practical terms for Armenia’s economy?

 

When it comes to trade and energy, I can cite some of our focus areas.

 

The first is support for the adoption of European standards for products, which allows Armenian products and Armenian produce to reach new markets.

 

One of the objectives of Armenia’s economic and trade policy is to diversify both investments and trade, and EU support focuses on both.

 

It is not that we are against a particular relationship. Of course, when it comes to Russia, which you mentioned, we cooperate with Armenia to prevent sanctions circumvention.

 

So this is really to make sure that the sanctions for dual-use goods and other goods covered by sanctions are respected, and Armenia is very committed to that. There may still be some challenges, but overall, I think it is a very important area of bilateral cooperation.

 

But Armenia wants to diversify its markets to make sure that there is no overdependence on a particular trade relationship, for instance. And here we are also helping them.

 

– Can you give a concrete example?

 

Last year alone, we advised more than 40 enterprises through technical assistance on how to export to other markets. These companies can increase their exports to the EU.

This shows that the potential is there, but that it also requires investment.

 

– What support is the EU providing to Armenia’s private sector?

 

Just recently, we signed a guarantee agreement together with the Vice-President of the European Investment Bank, Karl Nehammer.

 

We work with the banking sector in order to provide support to private businesses. The total amount of support for the private sector from the European Investment Bank over the last two years has been €330 million. More than 27,000 jobs have been created.

 

So there is a range of tools that are being used to support the competitiveness of the Armenian economy.

 

And of course, the final outcome also depends on the innovative spirit and entrepreneurial spirit of the Armenian people.

 

– Energy security remains one of Armenia’s key vulnerabilities. What is the EU doing in this area?

 

On energy, one of the main areas of focus in which we have been investing is interconnectivity, with a very important ongoing project, the Caucasus Transmission Network, with an overall investment of more than €500 million. This is to upgrade the electricity grid with Georgia, which will allow the export of renewable energy from Armenia.

There have been a lot of investments in this area to reach Georgia, because this is the only border which is open currently, as you know, towards the west.

 

And then, of course, other markets, in particular, the Black Sea Connectivity Submarine Electricity Cable, which Armenia is aspiring to participate in. It has not been built yet. It would connect the South Caucasus and the EU and has the potential to help achieving ambitious green targets, by enabling the export of green energy from the South Caucasus.

 

– Armenian officials often speak about normalisation with Turkey as strategically important. Does the EU consider the opening of borders and transport links between Armenia and Turkey a realistic prospect in the coming years?

 

Of course. Absolutely realistic.

 

– Does the EU have a role in that process?

 

The EU does not have a role in the bilateral negotiations between Turkey and Armenia. But the EU does have a very important role in facilitating broader cross-regional interconnectivity.

 

There will be further connectivity forums, in which Armenia is participating, as well as participation from other countries in the region.

 

So this is not only about Armenia. It is about connecting Armenia as a hub with the rest of the Middle Corridor. This creates interdependencies, but also more independence, if you like, when more partners are involved.

 

Certainly, opening the border between Armenia and Turkey would create more opportunities, including for local communities.

 

By the way, over the past few years, we have supported engagement between civil society organisations and chambers of commerce on both sides of the border. We are also ready to use our financial instruments to facilitate investments – not only in infrastructure, but also in private sector development.

One important deliverable from the EU-Armenia summit was the announcement that we are going to work on the construction of three border crossings. One is connected to Azerbaijan, in the south.

 

Two others relate to the Armenian-Turkish frontier. One is at Margara, where some infrastructure already exists, but we are ready to support its expansion.

 

The second one is Akhurik, which is expected to become a new border crossing between Kars and Gyumri. These are concrete projects that are now being developed with international financial institutions.

 

– Were the first-ever EU-Armenia Summit and EPC summit symbolically significant for Armenia’s international positioning?

 

Yes. We also had, for the first time, participation from Canada. That was another important signal.

 

I think that here we sent a message to the Armenian public, a message of solidarity and support.

 

But I believe also that the Armenian public and the Armenian participants have passed a message to Europe that Armenia is here, Armenia exists, Armenia can be at the heart of European developments.

 

And I’m very confident that when the political leaders discuss the issues which the citizens have in their mind, this is precisely what democracy is about.

 

Author: Olga Konsevych

 

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EU turning a blind eye to arrests of Armenian church leaders, letter says

Boris Nahapetian
Christian Post
July 8, 2026
By Christian TodayWednesday, July 08, 2026

Etchmiadzin Cathedral is the mother church of the Armenian Apostolic Church, located in the city of Vagharshapat (Etchmiadzin), Armenia. | Getty Images/Domingo Leiva

The European Union has been accused of turning a blind eye to the Armenian government’s actions against the Armenian Apostolic Church.

Opposition leader Samvel Karapetyan, a businessman and Russian national who has been held in detention and is now under house arrest, instructed his legal representatives, Amsterdam & Partners LLP, to initiate legal action against the EU for its support for Armenia.

In a legal letter, the EU is accused of standing by Pashinyan’s government and presenting it as a democratic success story, despite ongoing concerns about its treatment of opposition figures and the Armenian Apostolic Church, which dates back to the fourth century.  

Tensions between church and state in the country have increased since Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan came to power in 2018. Relations deteriorated even more sharply following Armenia’s defeat in the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war.

Several bishops have been arrested, while the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Catholicos Karekin II, has been barred from leaving the country. Critics have accused Pashinyan of acting like a Soviet-era dictator.

For his part, Pashinyan has said he is attempting to save the church from “anti-Christian” and “anti-state” elements. Senior church leaders have been accused of supporting the violent overthrow of a democratically elected government and of condoning calls for the assassination of government ministers.

In the letter, Karapetyan’s legal representatives questioned the validity of Armenia’s recent parliamentary election. Karapetyan’s Strong Armenia party received 23% of the vote, less than half the 49% achieved by Pashinyan’s Civil Contract party.

The election result has been challenged in the courts by Strong Armenia, although the party has said it has little faith in the independence of the courts.

Robert Amsterdam, managing partner of Amsterdam & Partners LLP, said, “The European Union has not acted as a neutral observer. It has chosen to align itself with a government that has overseen widespread arrests, targeted its critics, attacked the Church and weakened democratic safeguards.
 
“Brussels cannot claim to be a defender of democracy while ignoring these abuses and refusing to engage seriously with opposition voices. The EU’s actions have helped shield this government from accountability.”

In response to the claims, a spokesperson for the EU said, “When it comes to elections, the OSCE/ODIHR election observation mission has concluded in its preliminary findings that the elections in Armenia ‘offered voters a genuine choice among political alternatives in a well-run process’. 

“The observers also reported that the legal framework provided a ‘sound basis for democratic elections’ and addressed several prior ODIHR recommendations.

“At the same time, OSCE/ODIHR identified a number of concerns, which we encourage the relevant stakeholders in Armenia to address.

“OSCE/ODIHR also highlighted the direct pressure from abroad in the form of escalating trade restrictions, security threats and hybrid operations by Russia.

“As already emphasized in the EU statement issued by the High Representative on 8 June on the outcome of parliamentary elections in Armenia, the EU calls on all political actors to respect the outcome of the vote, as well as make use of legal mechanisms to address any electoral complaints.”

This article was originally published at Christian Today 

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The Politics of the Armenian Genocide

Torgomian Varazdat
Washington Jewish Week
July 8 2026

Editorial: The Politics of the Armenian Genocide

More than a century after approximately 1.5 million Armenians were systematically massacred by the Ottoman Empire during World War I, Israel has decided to officially recognize those atrocities as genocide. Over three dozen countries — including the United States, France, Germany and Canada — have already done so. Despite broad agreement among historians that the Armenian genocide occurred, Israel remained one of the last Western democracies to withhold formal recognition.

Successive Israeli governments did so for reasons of national security, not historical disagreement. Turkey was Israel’s closest Muslim ally, while Azerbaijan became an increasingly indispensable strategic partner, supplying energy, purchasing Israeli weapons and providing Israel with an intelligence foothold on Iran’s border. Recognizing the Armenian genocide threatened those relationships, so diplomacy consistently prevailed over history.

Since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, however, relations between Israel and Turkey have collapsed. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has embraced Hamas, accused Israel of genocide, severed economic ties and repeatedly compared Israeli leaders to Nazis. With little left to lose, Israel’s cabinet unanimously approved recognition of the Armenian genocide, subject to final approval by the Knesset.

The obvious conclusion is that Israel is using history in its confrontation with Turkey. That may make political sense, but it raises an important moral question. If recognizing a genocide is the right thing to do, should governments wait until doing so becomes politically convenient?

Israel is hardly alone. The United States delayed official recognition of the Armenian genocide for decades before finally acting in 2021, after relations with Turkey had sharply deteriorated. Other governments have followed similar paths. Historical truth has too often been acknowledged only after the diplomatic costs became acceptable.

That should trouble us.

A genocide either occurred or it did not. Recognition should depend upon historical evidence, not the current state of international alliances. When governments acknowledge crimes against humanity only after strategic circumstances change, they invite skepticism about whether they are honoring history or exploiting it.

Yet imperfect motives do not necessarily produce an imperfect result. Israel should have recognized the Armenian genocide years ago, when doing so required genuine political courage. That it waited until recognition no longer carried significant diplomatic cost diminishes the courage the decision reflects. It does not diminish the historical truth the decision finally acknowledges.

Nor does recognition alter the legal standard by which future allegations of genocide — including those directed at Israel — must be judged. Every such accusation must stand or fall on its own evidence under international law. Recognizing one genocide neither proves nor disproves another.

The practical consequences of Israel’s decision will likely be modest. Turkey and Azerbaijan are unlikely to alter their policies, and nothing can change what happened more than a century ago. But recognition has never been about rewriting history. It is about preventing its erasure. Nations that refuse to acknowledge crimes against humanity lend comfort to denial and diminish their own moral authority.

That is why timing matters. Israel has finally reached the right destination. One can only wish it — and many other nations — had arrived there when doing so demanded conviction rather than convenience.

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Toronto: Towers, Seniors Residence, Cultural Facilities Proposed by Scarboroug

Hovhannisian John
URBAN Toronto
July 8 2026
Towers, Seniors Residence, Cultural Facilities Proposed by Scarborough Armenian Church

A new proposal would bring a multi-phase mixed-use redevelopment to central Scarborough adjacent to Centennial College’s Progress Campus. Designed by architects—Alliance for the Holy Trinity Armenian Church, the development would retain the existing church while introducing two 39-storey condominium towers, a 17-storey seniors-oriented mixed-use building with a daycare/pre-school, and a new Armenian community hub.

The proposal applies to a site at 920 and 930 Progress Avenue, a triangular parcel at the northeast corner with Markham Road, and south of its interchange with Highway 401. Holy Trinity Armenian Church which currently occupies the property at 920 Progress Avenue would remain, while a two-storey commercial building at 930 Progress Avenue, which operates as a private post-secondary school, would be demolished.

Goldberg Group has submitted Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment applications to the City of Toronto on behalf of the developer. The master plan arranges the new buildings along the north side of the two lots, north of the retained church. Heights range from the four-storey, 21m-tall Barev Centre to a 17-storey, 66m seniors-oriented mixed-use building, to a pair of 39-storey condominium towers rising 133m at the east end of the site. 

The proposal would deliver 56,804m² of Gross Floor Area, resulting in a Floor Space Index of 3.79 times coverage of the 14,995m² site, comprising 51,437m² of residential space and 5,367m² of institutional uses. Across the 784-unit development, the suite mix consists of 436 one-bedroom units, 260 two-bedroom units, and 88 three-bedroom units, of which the seniors building represents 126 apartment units. Its base would include a third-floor daycare/pre-school, while the Barev Centre would provide approximately 2,201m² of community space. The existing church would be linked to the seniors building by a new enclosed walkway. Two elevators would serve the seniors building, or one for every 61 units, indicating short waits for service.

Looking northwest to 930 Progress Avenue, designed by architects—Alliance for the Holy Trinity Armenian Church

Of the two condominium towers, the west tower would contain 335 units, while the east tower would accommodate 323 units. Slender floor-plates of approximately 625m² begin at the fourth floor. The towers generally maintain 25m separation distances, with one localized 22m separation across a 10.4m portion of the facade. 

Residents would have access to 2,144m² of indoor and 1,272m² of outdoor amenity areas. Vertical circulation would be provided by three elevators in each residential tower, equating to roughly one elevator for every 108 units in the west tower and 112 units in the east tower, indicating reasonable response times when all elevators are operating, providing fast enough motors are installed.

Parking would be split between separate underground facilities serving the residential and institutional components. The condominium towers would share a four-level underground garage containing 382 parking spaces, including 331 resident and 51 visitor spots, while the seniors building, Barev Centre, and church would share a three-level underground garage with 265 spaces, including 104 resident and 161 visitor spots. In total, the development would provide 647 vehicular parking spaces. Parking for 610 bicycles is planned, comprising 541 long-term and 69 short-term spots.

Looking north to the podium of the seniors residence, designed by architects—Alliance for the Holy Trinity Armenian Church

TTC bus stops are immediately adjacent at the Progress Avenue and Markham Road intersection and at Centennial Campus. GO Transit Route 41 stops approximately 280m from the site. Cycling access remains comparatively limited, with no dedicated cycling infrastructure directly adjoining the property, although planned cycling routes along Ellesmere Road and Sheppard Avenue East are anticipated according to the application.

The Markham Road corridor to the south features a growing number of proposed and under-construction high-rise communities. Southeast, 42 Tuxedo Court would rise 22 and 28 storeys. To the south, a 29-storey tower is proposed at 1256 Markham Road, and the three-tower Sequence Condos development would range from 20 to 30 storeys. Farther south, ME Living Condos is under construction with seven buildings reaching 34 storeys, with additional proposals at 1050 Markham Road (15 and 37 storeys), 1125 Markham Road (four towers from 8 to 37 storeys), and 1151 Markham Road (44 storeys).

UrbanToronto will continue to follow progress on this development, but in the meantime, you can learn more about it from our Database file, linked below. If you’d like, you can join in on the conversation in the associated Project Forum thread or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.

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UrbanToronto’s research and data service, UTPro, provides comprehensive data on construction projects in the Greater Golden Horseshoe—from proposal through to completion. Other services include Instant Reports, downloadable snapshots based on location, and a daily subscription newsletter, New Development Insider, that tracks projects from initial application.

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Washington and Tehran on the verge of a fragile memorandum and a new war

Garnik Zakarian

July 8, 2026

In the first days of July, the direct and indirect military strikes between Iran and the United States, the outbreak of sharp rhetoric showed that the existing temporary arrangements and the memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran could not ensure complete stability. Therefore, the situation in the region can get out of control at any moment.

The parties are actually returning to the logic of a managed crisis, where military pressure and the diplomatic process are applied in parallel. If during the previous weeks the main goal was to preserve the fragile ceasefire formed after the war, then the escalations of the first week of July became a risky period of preparation for the next round of negotiations, during which both sides tried to strengthen their negotiating positions through a show of force, without taking into account the possible irreversible consequences.

US President Donald Trump announced on July 6 that the United States will either make a deal with Tehran or “finish the deal”, referring to the US-Israeli joint attack on Iran launched on February 28. The Iranian side described the US president’s words as “illusory”, calling to speak with the Iranian people with respect, “otherwise we will respond in another language”. This was followed by information from Western periodicals that the Iranian military fired at least two missiles at commercial ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz on the evening of July 6.

According to the AXios publication, Tehran’s strikes threaten to violate the memorandum of understanding signed on June 18, in which Iran agreed to stop attacks in the Strait of Hormuz, the media also predicts that the US is likely to retaliate against Iranian targets.

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  • Iranian messages to Yerevan. Is Tehran waiting for a strategic clarification?

In turn, the UK Maritime Trade Office (UKMTO) reported that on July 6, a tanker traveling south along the coast of Oman through the Strait of Hormuz was hit by an unknown projectile, which caused a fire. On the evening of July 7, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) carried out airstrikes against the military bases of the IRGC and its allies in the east of Syria, Tehran responded in the early morning of July 8 by shooting down an American reconnaissance ATS in the Strait of Hormuz and shelling the locations of the American contingent in Iraq.

Along with military operations, harsh statements were made. The US Defense Minister emphasized.

“We will not allow the security of our forces to be threatened and we will respond to any aggression by taking all necessary measures,” to which the Chief of the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces stated.

“Any miscalculation on the part of the US and disruption of regional stability will receive a disproportionate and crushing blow, directly from our own side.”

US President Donald Trump also announced that the memorandum of understanding signed to end the conflict with Iran is “finished”, adding that he no longer wants to communicate with Tehran.

“For me, I think everything is over. I don’t want to deal with them anymore. They are vile people,” said Trump.

“They are sick people. They are led by sick people. They are cruel, violent people, and if they had nuclear weapons, they would use them. This issue is over for me,” President Trump said. The US president also noted that negotiations with Iran can continue, but added:

“For me, dealing with them is just a waste of time. They are liars.”

Trump made this statement in Ankara, before the NATO summit being held in the capital of Turkey. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte told reporters before the NATO summit that new US attacks on Iran were “absolutely necessary”.

Kaya Kalas, head of EU foreign policy, wrote later in X. “The skirmishes between the US and Iran further complicate the already tense negotiations to end the war. Iran’s attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait are unacceptable.”

Speaker of the Iranian parliament and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf also accused the US of violating the ceasefire agreement.

Russian Orientalist Victor Nadein-Raevsky 168.amtold that the peculiarity of the situation is that the military escalation and the diplomatic process are interrelated, and any tactical step taking place in the field immediately reshapes the agenda of the upcoming negotiations in Islamabad. According to him, there are several scenarios for the development of the situation, one of which is a manageable de-escalation, according to which mutual strikes are a re-establishment of the “red lines” of the parties, there is no desire to wage a big war. In another scenario, he said, the escalation could spiral out of control.

“A stalemate, a situation of ‘no war, no peace’ can also develop.” In the case of all these scenarios, the logic of the negotiations scheduled days later changes, putting their effectiveness in doubt.

This crisis showed that diplomacy without military pressure and military pressure without a diplomatic window no longer work in US-Iran relations. Most likely, the region will follow the path of the first scenario. The meeting in Islamabad will become a political platform for “ceasefire”, where the parties will try to capitalize on the military results recorded in the field in recent days. But the lack of guarantees of stability means that any subsequent mistake could start a more dangerous wave of escalation,” said Victor Nadein-Raevsky.

In his opinion, this new escalation of US-Iran relations is directly projected on the environment of the South Caucasus, further increasing the vulnerability of the region, competition, tension in and around the region.

“The deepening of the crisis between Washington and Tehran affects the South Caucasus, any Western presence in the Caucasus is now perceived by Iran as a possible attempt to block the USA. At the same time, the restoration of economic pressures and the issue of regional communications worry Iran and force it to work more actively in the region, trying to neutralize possible risks for itself,” Victor Nadein-Raevsky said.

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168: If Nikol Pashinyan sleeps like Gagik Tsarukyan’s lion one day and does not wake up,

Talar Tumanian

July 8, 2026

In the “Pressing” program Satik Seyranyan the guest civil technologist Narek Malyan is

The main theses of the interview are below.

  • What is happening in Armenia now is a public warning event. Nothing unexpected happens. Many officials said that going to the elections with Nikol Pashinyan will have this consequence. This is the result of the total inactivity of the former parliamentary opposition.
  • Daniel Ioannisyan declares that what is happening to Gagik Tsarukyan stems from political expediency, and there is no legal issue here.
  • The first emotional arrest was of General Manvel Grigoryanin, when a big legal, moral and discrediting campaign took place against him. The “tushonka show” was staged by the political team of the CP, which worked at that time and was used as a tool against Manvel Grigoryan (the “tushonka show” against General Manvel was staged by a member of the CP, the current governor of Lori, Aren Mkrtchyan). Now what happened with Gagik Tsarukyan works in the opposite direction. Everyone was knocked to the ground, including me. Among those who brought me down was a police officer whom I once employed.

Read also

  • Mark the Evangelist and the first Gospel
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  • Why is Gagik Tsarukyan’s brother-in-law Khachatur Sukiasyan silent?

There was no expediency in knocking a 70-year-old man, Gagik Tsarukyan, to the ground in his home. Handcuffs are a special measure, they are used in cases provided by law. In the case of Gagik Tsarukyan, there was no need for it, the handcuff was placed on his hand. And what did they take the lions to? I keep a parrot… If they come to arrest me, will they take my parrot too?:

  • In the second part of the election campaign, it was obvious that Nikol Pashinyan’s main target was Gagik Tsarukyan, I don’t know why. It could have been for a variety of reasons. His devotion to Gagik Tsarukyan was different. And it was obvious that Nikol Pashinyan will do everything to prevent PAP from overcoming the temporary threshold. as a result, the votes were stolen so that it would not enter the referendum. The government falsified votes in its favor, reduced votes from opposition parties and falsified votes in favor of forces that perhaps wanted to see them through. Until the last day, according to various public opinion polls, PAP had about 7% of votes. We will have a picture of what really happened, including how the votes were stolen, after the change of power.
  • I will present facts that prove that the government falsified votes in favor of the “Armenia” alliance. In the two polling stations where the results of the elections were canceled, the chairman of the commission was from the Communist Party, and the secretary from the “Armenia” bloc. I declare with full responsibility that it is not possible to publish results without the signature of the president and secretary. They both had signatures. I do not completely exclude the fact that the secretaries of the two precincts did it on their own initiative, but in that case the “Armenia” bloc, which dealt with the Gegham Nazaryan phenomenon, should have made a statement. 
  • These elections were interesting in that everyone understood everything. Everyone knew what would happen if they waited 5 years for the elections with the genius plan of the “Armenia” alliance. Applying to the Constitutional Court was definitely the right step, but the public’s expectations also refer to generating some other parallel processes: taking mandates and what to do, not taking them and what to do.:

  • I am far from advising the opposition, because in any decision the responsibility is theirs, but if my opinion is interesting, I will advise to take those mandates, because they will be important from the point of view of rationality. The “Strong Armenia” bloc now has to answer for the previous 5 years of inactivity of the “Armenia” bloc. By the way, in addition to Nikol Pashinyan and CP, one of the supporters of Robert Kocharyan said that if he passes the Parliament, everyone will elect Robert Kocharyan as Prime Minister. 
  • If Nikol Pashinyan sleeps like Gagik Tsarukyan’s lion one day and does not wake up, who will they nominate as Prime Minister, Ruben Rubinyan, if there is no opposition in the Parliament?: So, mandates should be taken.
  • Nikol Pashinyan’s behavior is not that of a winner. He has not yet left the logic of the campaign, he is still campaigning. He has something to prove. 
  • After the elections, Pashinyan announced in the National Assembly that if there is an invitation, I will go to Baku. Maybe it was an Azerbaijani demand that there should be such a statement?
  • The next election is in 5 years, but Nikol Pashinyan changes the “Electoral Code” in an extraordinary session immediately after the elections, and changes other laws quickly. What is the reason? It is obvious that he is up to something because he is unhappy with the results of the election:
  • There has never been a shortage of murky water fishermen in Armenia. Their motivation is clear. The public should be made a participant in political processes.

  • I specifically went live to the National Assembly to meet the deputies with whom we were identified. But it turned out that the opposition MPs took the position that: come, bow down, we will sign the impeachment paper. Within 6 months, only 2 opposition MPs met with Edgar Ghazaryan. We contacted the opposition because we considered it taboo to criticize the opposition and ask uncomfortable questions:
  • A demonstration took place in front of the CC. how many people participated… Very few. So many people came, twice as many people came to the National Assembly during the gathering organized by the “We Are Awake” movement.
  • We have self-proclaimed oppositionists, who have been used many times by the government, and now they have taken refuge with some wing of the opposition. If I want to know what Robert Kocharyan thinks, I listen to Edmon Marukyan. Edmon Marukyan, by the way, as a joker, entered the impeachment process in order to make the process less serious, at the request of Robert Kocharian.:
  • The impeachment agenda is a unifying agenda, unlike the election process. Robert Kocharyan’s goal is not to remove Nikol Pashinyan, but to come to power. The only option of the change of power he imagined was to replace Nikol Pashinyan. Davit Hambardzumyan took that yoke on his shoulders because no one wanted to take it. What happened, you saw, persecutions started against Davit, he was arrested, he resigned from his position, he sat down… Davit personally asked Robert Kocharyan to be the unified candidate of the opposition, he refused because the impeachment also meant going to the streets, and Robert Kocharyan’s anti-rating did not allow him to go to the streets generate Before the election, there could have been 3 different impeachment processes with 3 different candidates, but Robert Kocharyan aborted it.:
  • Yes, I said that I take full responsibility for the impeachment process, because I will not go to the elections, I am not afraid of the loss of rating. But I am not a deputy to negotiate with the CP. In other words, I would have to negotiate with the CP, bring votes, they would sit in their parliamentary seats?

  • The opposition must take the mandates and honestly admit that it no longer has power on the street. They should let the street happen with other actors and other leaders.
  • First of all, I doubt that there will be a social riot in Armenia, but even if there is, first those hundreds and thousands of people will wipe out the inactive opposition, and then the new Nikol Pashinyan.:
  • I criticize Robert Kocharyan not for doing something, but for not doing anything. The opposition leader is not just relaxing in the Aegean Sea, but a responsibility.
  • As far as I know, a man, if he says something, and several times, he must do what he says. Now we will see whether the people who said that if Nikol stays in power, I will not take a mandate, will take it or not…
  • Mamiko Aslanyan will confirm. I fought for a long time that the prison employee who opens the door says, “A deputy has come to you, tell me who came.” So, let them not sell their visits to people who have become political prisoners due to their inactivity. There was a case that one of the deputies of the “Armenia” bloc went to the “Armavir” prison to see a political prisoner, the latter said: “I am busy, I cannot accept him.”:
  • The entire palette of government violence was applied to me. I have been targeted by both the government and the opposition when I started telling people the truth.
  • If you do nothing and are constantly beaten, then you cannot be called anything other than a “boxing pear”.:
  • No one has caused my father as much personal pain as Nikol Pashinyan. My father took my sitting very hard. My father was the liturgist in Saint John. My father was already on the stage when Nikol Pashinyan came, without a protocol announcement beforehand. My father gave the name of the Catholicos three times, then gave communion to Nikol Pashinyan. Even if Bagrat was a saint, he could not have given communion, because it is a canonical violation, he would have been excommunicated if he did not give communion. In my father, on the one hand, there was personal pain, standing in front of the person who caused him that pain, and on the other hand, the clergyman:

  • The public should be left with the government and the opposition. There is nothing to explain to the public.
  • There will be a new attack against the Church immediately after Tsarukyan’s topic is closed:

Details in the video.




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RFE/RL – Iran’s Concerns Over U.S.-Armenian Corridor Deal Yet To Be Addressed

Khoyetsian Rose
July 08, 2026


Armenia – Iranian Ambassador Khalil Shirgholami speaks during a news conference in Yerevan, July 8, 2026.

The Armenian government has still not addressed Iran’s concerns about its plans to open a U.S.-run transit corridor along Armenia’s border with the Islamic Republic, a senior Iranian diplomat indicated on Wednesday five days after Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s visit to Tehran.

The planned Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) would connect Azerbaijan to its Nakhichevan exclave through Armenia’s strategic Syunik region. The U.S. government is to gain a 74 percent stake in a joint venture that should build and manage a railway, a road, energy supply lines and other infrastructure there. Iran fears that this transit arrangement could endanger its border with Armenia and lead to U.S. security presence there.

The Iranian ambassador in Yerevan, Khalil Shirgholami, described these concerns as “very legitimate and logical,” pointing to the U.S. and Israeli military campaign against his country and accusing Washington of violating a ceasefire agreement reached last month.

“These concerns must be clearly addressed,” Shirgholami told a news conference. “The Armenian government has assured us that as a result of this project’s implementation and the U.S. presence no threats or challenges to Iran will emerge.”

“I think that we need to work out a mechanism whereby Armenia will be able to realize its full potential for de-blockade but at the same time the potential risks of U.S. presence and threats to Iran must be managed and addressed in a clear manner,” he said.

Iran – Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian meet in Tehran, July 3, 2026.

Pashinian met with Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian last Friday when he visited Tehran to attend funeral ceremonies for Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in U.S.-Israeli air strikes in February. In a clear reference to the United States, Pezeshkian told Pashinian that “extra-regional” powers must not be allowed to interfere in Armenian-Iranian relations. Pashinian reportedly assured him that Yerevan “will not participate in any plan, project or action that is against the interests and security of Iran.”

U.S. President Donald Trump pointed to Pashinian’s commitment to the TRIPP when he endorsed the Armenian premier ahead of the parliamentary elections on June 7. Following his party’s victory in the disputed polls, Pashinian said that the project’s implementation will be one of his top policy priorities. Azerbaijani and Turkish leaders have said that the TRIPP amounts to the kind of “extraterritorial corridor” that has been sought by them since the 2020 war in Nagorno-Karabakh.

In Shirgholami’s words, during the meeting with Pashinian, Pezeshkian also stressed the importance of signing an Armenian-Iranian agreement on strategic partnership “as soon as possible.”

“We are currently working on the text of the document,” said the envoy. “It is in the drafting stage now, and we hope to complete this stage and begin work towards signing it as soon as possible.”

Armenian officials have made no public statements on the planned agreement lately.

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Iranian Envoy Warns Of Disunity In Armenia After Tsarukian’s Arrest

Vorskanian Yeghisabet
  • Ruzanna Stepanian
July 08, 2026
Armenia – Masked National Security Service officers topple opposition leader Gagik Tsarukian to the ground at his home outside Yerevan, July 7, 2026. (A screenshot from an official video of his demonstrative arrest)

The Iranian ambassador in Yerevan, Khalil Shirgholami, warned of a risk of dangerous “division” within Armenia on Wednesday when he commented on the controversial arrest of businessman and opposition leader Gagik Tsarukian.

Shirgholami also expressed hope for a compromise settlement of Tsarukian’s dispute with Iranian entrepreneurs which is at the heart of fraud and money laundering charges levelled against him right after his demonstrative arrest on Monday.

The arrest followed a 12-hour search conducted at his villa by law-enforcement authorities. They also raided dozens of companies owned by Tsarukian and halted their operations in a crackdown widely linked to Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s repeated pledges to jail and “dispossess” his political foes.

Armenia’s Investigative Committee claims that Tsarukian led a “criminal group” that misappropriated $22 million worth of fuel, transport equipment and other goods supplied by his Iranian business partners from 2022-2024. His lawyers say he himself was defrauded by the Iranians and alerted the law-enforcement authorities about that.

The accusations stem from a large Iranian shopping center set up in September 2024 by Tsarukian’s Multi Group and Iran’s ParsHilal Caspian Group. The 18,000-square-meter facility located just outside Yerevan was inaugurated during a ceremony attended by Armenian Economy Minister Gevorg Papoyan and Iranian Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade Mohammad Atabak.

It was announced at the time that the Iran Trade Center will consist of over 100 sections selling mostly Iranian-made consumer goods, chemicals and other industrial products. However, those plans never materialized due to what Shirgholami described as “certain economic differences” between the center’s two co-founders.

Armenia – Senior Armenian and Iranian officials inaugurate the Iran Trade Center at Gagik Tsarukian’s Arinj Mall outside Yerevan, September 30, 2024.

“I have personally had many discussions with both parties, willing to act as a mediator in order to try to reach an agreement through compromise,” the envoy told a news conference. “Up until recently, I was in contact with the parties and tried to find a solution that would be acceptable to both parties. Since we are currently dealing with a legal process, we hope that it will be possible to resolve this issue based on the available evidence and testimony.”

Shirgholami went on to stress in the same context that Iran does not meddle in Armenia’s internal political affairs. But citing Iran’s own political experience, he also warned: “When a certain division is created within a country under the influence of a particular event, it can never bring good results.”

“We hope and wish that all the forces of Armenia — both the ruling party, the government and the opposition — can be united around national interests and goals. Because if there is no unity, then further paths of development are not possible. Iran wants to see a strong, united and consolidated Armenia,” added the diplomat.

Tsarukian’s Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK) was one of the three main opposition groups that challenged Pashinian’s Civil Contract party in last month’s parliamentary elections and rejected their official results as fraudulent. Pashinian vowed to jail their top leaders before and after the June 7 elections. Dozens of other opposition figures are already under arrest, facing criminal charges which they too reject as politically motivated.

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Pashinian Supporter Not Prosecuted For Death Call Against Armenian Church Head

Christine Harutyunian
  • Naira Bulghadarian
July 08, 2026
Armenia – Edvard Stepanian, a government supporter from Garni village, makes a death call against Chatollicos of All Armenians Garegin II outside a local church, December 28, 2025.

An Armenian prosecutor has blocked criminal charges against a supporter of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian who publicly called for the murder of Catholicos Garegin II last December.

Pashinian attended at the time a Sunday mass in Garni, a large village 27 kilometers east of Yerevan, led by a renegade priest as part of his efforts to depose the supreme head of the Armenian Apostolic Church. His political allies and other supporters were also in attendance.

A journalist with a pro-government news website interviewed some of those people in the courtyard of the local church. He wondered, in particular, what they think would force Garegin to bow to government pressure and resign.

“They should hit him on the head with a stone and kill him,” replied Edvard Stepanian, a 70-year-old Garni resident working for the village administration.

Armenia’s Investigative Committee launched an inquiry into the statement amid an uproar from Pashinian’s critics. The law-enforcement agency waited for months before petitioning the prosecutor overseeing the probe to allow Stepanian’s indictment on relevant charges.

The prosecutor refused to do that. As of Wednesday evening, the Office of the Prosecutor-General did not explain the decision in response to a written question sent by RFE/RL’s Armenian Service.

“I consider this to be the result of an order issued by the political authorities,” said Ruben Melikian, a prominent human rights lawyers critical of the Armenian government. “Law enforcement officers are simply executing it.”

The Investigative Committee’s inquiry into the death threat is officially going on. The committee says it is awaiting the findings of a linguistic examination of Stepanian’s statement ordered by it.

By contrast, law-enforcement authorities have been quick to prosecute Pashinian’s detractors accused of insulting the premier and other senior officials or threatening them with violence. Rafael Sargsian, a 73-year-old man, was charged with making a death threat against Pashinian last summer the day after angrily declaring that he is looking for a way to “catch Nikol and tear off his neck.”

In November, two pro-opposition podcasters, Naren Samsonian and Vazgen Saghatelian, were arrested on charges of making offensive and menacing statements about parliament speaker Alen Simonian. Both men were moved to house arrest this spring.

Artak Avetisian, a Yerevan resident, was arrested and indicted in May hours after using offensive language to attack Pashinian. Avetisian lashed out at the premier on social media as the latter campaigned for the June 7 parliamentary elections near his neighborhood. Melikian, who represents him, said the authorities’ failure to prosecute the Garni man is a “blatant” example of their selective and politically motivated enforcement of laws.

No Pashinian supporters have been prosecuted for offending or voicing threats against opposition politicians. Pashinian himself publicly insulted his political foes and threatened to jail them during the election campaign.

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RFE/RL – Uproar As Armenian Authorities Expose Tsarukian’s Violent Arrest

Chmshkian Vicken
  • Shoghik Galstian
July 08, 2026

Armenia – A screenshot of video of opposition leader Gagik Tsarukian’s violent arrest released by the Investigative Committee, July 7, 2026.

Armenian law-enforcement authorities have revealed the violent nature of opposition leader Gagik Tsarukian’s arrest promised by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian, sparking an uproar from human rights activists, opposition figures and many ordinary citizens.

Tsarukian was arrested on what he sees as trumped-up charges on Monday following a 12-hour search conducted in his villa just outside Yerevan and similar raids on dozens of companies owned by him. Armenia’s Investigative Committee released on Tuesday night a one-minute video of his detention, a highly unusual practice for criminal cases involving prominent critics of the Armenian government.

It shows a dozen armed and masked officers of the National Security Service (NSS) bursting into the villa, surrounding Tsarukian, grabbing his arms and legs, and knocking him to the ground. Armenian law allows such use of forces only if a criminal suspect is armed, strongly resists law-enforcement officers or threatens them otherwise. The 69-year-old businessman leading the opposition Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK) was not shown putting up any resistance to the officers.

“They had no right to do such a thing, there was no need for it,” one of Tsarukian’s lawyers, Yerem Sargsian, said on Wednesday. “It was an excess of official authority that must be a subject of criminal proceedings.”

Armenia – Prosperous Armenia Party leader Gagik Tsarukian is arrested by NSS officers, July 7, 2026.

“The footage shows that [Tsarukian] is not resisting but several employees are trying to knock him to the ground,” Anna Melikian, a human rights activist, told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service.

Another, more outspoken activist, Zhanna Aleksanian, claimed that the authorities violently arrested Tsarukian and publicized their actions at the behest of Pashinian. The latter repeatedly pledged to jail and dispossess his main political foes before and after last month’s disputed parliamentary elections in which the BHK was one of the main opposition contenders.

The extraordinary footage also prompted concern from the country’s human rights ombudswoman Anahit Manasian, drew strong condemnation from various opposition groups and caused outrage on social media.

“I would never have thought that I would feel sympathy for Tsarukian,” commented one social media user. “But the footage of the masked arrest show is simply disgusting, violating the dignity of a person, a citizen, violating the spirit of the law and justice.”

“I think the public sympathizes with Tsarukian, who endured all that with dignity,” said Aleksanian.

Armenia – National Security Service Director Andranik Simonian.

Hundreds of his supporters rallied outside an Investigative Committee building following his arrest. They applauded and chanted his name as a handcuffed Tsarukian was escorted out of the building and taken to a court in Yerevan. The tycoon smiled, telling journalists that fraud charges levelled against him are “fabricated.”

The NSS is currently headed by Andranik Simonian, a 36-year-old former judge reputed to be a figure strongly loyal to Pashinian. Simonian’s predecessor, Armen Abazian, was sacked in June last year the day after he reportedly defied Pashinian’s order to demonstratively and violently arrest Samvel Karapetian, a Russian-Armenian billionaire who later set up the country’s leading opposition group.

Masked NSS officers were deployed at the time around Karapetian’s mansion in Yerevan surrounded by hundreds of his angry supporters. But they did not storm it. Karapetian emerged from his residence and was escorted to police custody several hours later.

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