- Astghik Bedevian
The Armenian government decided on Thursday to spend 4.6 billion drams ($12.2 million) in fresh bonuses that will be paid to its senior officials and other government employees before the parliamentary elections slated for June 7.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s cabinet said that they will be rewarded for their improved performance, rather than the elections. But it did not specify any criteria used for evaluating their work.
Armenian opposition leaders are bound to describe the latest payments as an attempt to buy votes. They already accused Pashinian of seeking to bribe voters when the latter unexpectedly announced late last month an imminent rise in pensions.
The fresh bonuses will be allocated from the government’s budgetary Reserve Fund designed for emergency spending. Their aggregate amount represents a sizable increase from 3.6 billion drams provided for the same purpose last year.
Details of the previous bonuses paid to senior staff and other employees of 16 government agencies were exposed by Armenian media only in January, causing outrage among many citizens. It emerged that the ministers, their deputies and department heads received sums comparable to their annual incomes, ordinary civil servants were rewarded with less than one month’s worth of their much smaller salaries. It is not yet clear whether the government will maintain this huge disparity.
Justice Minister Srbuhi Galian was the only senior official to have disclosed the size of her post-tax bonus: about 7 million drams ($18,400). Pashinian defended these lavish payments on January 15, saying that they will make those officials less prone to corruption. He gave a similar reason for his government’s latest decision.
“No matter how much we are criticized, with this mechanism, we are taking an important step on the path to the further development of our state,” he said.
Varuzhan Hoktanian, a veteran activist affiliated with Armenia’s leading anti-graft watchdog, again questioned on Thursday the official rationale for the bonuses, pointing to a lack of transparency in their distribution.
“In addition to high salaries which are a necessary condition for reducing corruption, we should also look at the existence of transparency, accountability, and oversight mechanisms,” Hoktanian told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service. “I doubt that this exists. But if it does, we should at least see in a transparent way what exactly the rewards are for.”
The leadership of the Armenian parliament controlled by Pashinian’s Civil Contract party also caused outrage on social media in December when it confirmed spending at least 545 million drams ($1.4 million) on yearend bonuses to its members and staffers. Each of the 107 parliament deputies received 3 million drams ($7,850).
The net salary of a rank-and-file deputy is roughly 600,000 drams ($1,550) per month. Armenia’s official average monthly wage currently stands at almost 309,000 drams ($810). Most working-age Armenians, including schoolteachers and other public sector employees, earn less than that.
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Armenia-EU relations enter completely new phase – minister
Relations between Armenia and the European Union have entered a completely new stage in terms of strategic partnership, Interior Minister Arpine Sargsyan said.
“The visa liberalization process is not only about facilitating travel from a visa perspective; it is also a very important strategic approach for us to continue and strengthen the reform agenda that the Republic of Armenia has currently adopted in terms of migration strategy, integrated border management, human rights protection and other areas,” the minister said.
Sargsyan reaffirmed the commitment of the Armenian government to fully implement each point included in the action plan within the framework of the visa liberalization dialogue.
She assured that Armenia is implementing the entire process through an institutional mechanism. A number of mechanisms have been created so that the action plan does not remain a plan of actions determined by a single person.
“For us, visa liberalization is about people. It is about empowering people and establishing a new level of cultural and social ties and people-to-people contacts. We have already made progress in various areas, both within the framework of the visa liberalization dialogue and beyond, in terms of Armenia-EU relations.”
“We note that Armenia-EU relations have moved to a completely new stage in terms of strategic partnership. I am confident that the topic of visa liberalization will also allow us to expand our partnership and achieve new results in bilateral relations, including for our citizens,” Sargsyan said.
The minister thanked EU partners for the programmatic and financial support provided.
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President Khachaturyan meets representatives of Armenian community in Chile
Armenian President Vahagn Khachaturyan met with representatives of the Armenian community in Chile during his visit to the South American country.
Khachaturyan visited Chile for the inauguration of President-elect José Antonio Kast.
During the meeting with the local Armenian community, President Khachaturyan provided details on developments in Armenia and the region, as well as ongoing reforms in the country, the President’s Office said in a readout.
He also answered questions from attendees, addressing the priorities and challenges of Armenia’s domestic and foreign policy, as well as the framework for establishing peace and developing relations with neighboring countries.
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Armenian President attends inauguration of Chile’s José Antonio Kast
President of Armenia, Vahagn Khachaturyan, participated in the inauguration of Chile’s President-elect, José Antonio Kast.
Khachaturyan is visiting Chile from March 10 to 12.
The President’s Office released photos from the ceremony.
During the visit, Khachaturyan also met with representatives of the Armenian community in Chile.
He met with other world leaders attending an official reception prior to the inauguration.
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Verelq: Robert Kocharyan’s team is preparing a big event
“Hraparak” newspaper writes:
“The team of the second president of the Republic of Armenia, Robert Kocharyan, is preparing a big event, which will probably take place on March 16, at the sports concert complex named after Karen Demirchyan. On that day, it will be announced about the alliance led by Kocharyan, which will participate in the national elections on June 7.
There will be 2 forces in the alliance: the Armenian Revolutionary Alliance and the right-centered party of Sevak Khachatryan, candidate for the mayor of Etchmiadzin. Although the passing threshold for alliances was raised before this election from 7 to 8 percent, the second president’s team has no doubts that they will overcome the threshold, one more thing.
Although the government and its propaganda machine insist on the opposite. By the way, the first three of the alliance are 21 years old. Robert Kocharyan, Ishkhan Saghatelyan, Anna Grigoryan: Last time, the fourth number was Vahe Hakobyan, the chairman of the “Reviving Armenia” party, this time it will probably be Sevak Khachatryan.
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Pashinyan used the European podium to label his opponents
It is difficult to perceive Nikol Pashinyan’s speech in the European Parliament as a responsible speech of the head of a sovereign state. It was more reminiscent of an attempt at domestic political reprisal, transferred to an international prestigious platform.
Instead of representing Armenia’s state interests, security challenges and regional realities, Pashinyan used the European podium to label his own opponents.
Pashinyan presented the representatives of the Armenian Apostolic Church and opponents of the government as a “party of war”, trying to connect them with external forces and attribute to them a willingness to sacrifice Armenia’s independence. In reality, this was not a political assessment, but a political labeling aimed at discrediting one’s opponents before the international audience.
When the head of the country presents a segment of his own society as a dangerous force or a tool of external influence from an internationally prestigious podium, he actually transfers the internal political conflict of his country to an external platform. Such a step does not strengthen the state, but shows the political weakness and mistrust of the government towards its own society.
Another goal was also evident in Pashinyan’s speech. He tried to present the political field of Armenia as a geopolitical confrontation, contrasting the government with the allegedly “pro-Russian war party”. This narrative has long been used in the internal political struggle, but when it is heard from the European podium, it acquires a completely different meaning. It is more reminiscent of a report to Western sponsors than a speech by the head of a sovereign state.
In fact, Pashinyan was trying to convince the European audience that there is a political opposition in Armenia that needs to be neutralized. In other words, the internal political struggle of Armenia is presented as a geopolitical struggle, where the opponents of the government are declared “supporters of war” or “agents of the influence of external forces”. This is a dangerous and irresponsible policy that not only deepens public polarization, but also involves foreign forces in Armenia’s internal political conflict.
When the head of the country discredits his opponents and even one of the fundamental national institutions, the church, from the international podium, it is not a sign of a strong state, but a clear manifestation of the political crisis of the government. Such behavior shows that Pashinyan is trying to get legitimacy, “green light” from Western centers to carry out repressions inside Armenia.
June 7 becomes not only another election day, but a public verdict on the policy, as a result of which Armenia is gradually losing its independence and political subjectivity in international relations. On that day, the citizens will actually decide whether Armenia will continue to move along the path of power subjected to the calculations of external centers, or whether it will choose the path of sovereign, dignified and independent state development.
Political scientist Suren Surenyants
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Another cyclone is approaching Armenia from the Mediterranean region
Another cyclone is approaching Armenia from the regions of the Mediterranean Sea.
Gagik Surenyan, deputy director of the hydrometeorology and monitoring center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, announced this on his Facebook page.
“The penetration of the cyclone will begin on the night of March 13-14 and it will operate in Armenia until March 16 inclusive.
Thus, on the night and morning of March 13-14, on March 15-16, precipitation is expected in most regions, in the form of snow in mountain and foothill zones, and in the form of wet snow and rain in valley zones.
From March 17, precipitation will temporarily stop for 2 days,” Surenyan said.
The air temperature will not change significantly during the day for the next 5 days, but there will be an increase in the temperature at night.
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Aliyev says peace with Armenia exists “not only on paper”
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev lauded the peace with Armenia on Thursday, saying that peace has been established “not only on paper.”
He made the remarks at the opening ceremony of the 13th Global Baku Forum.
“I have repeatedly stated that we have achieved peace with Armenia not only on paper. Seven months ago, the peace agreement was initialed and a joint statement was adopted. At the same time, we are living in a real world of peace. The situation on the border is calm, there are no longer any exchanges of fire, and there are no casualties or losses.
The 28-year mediation of the OSCE Minsk Group failed. The goal of the co-chairs was not to resolve the conflict but to freeze it and use it as leverage over the two countries. Therefore, we concluded that this mediation should be abandoned.
This is not merely a theory but real experience. We have lived through it, and today we see its results. Therefore, I believe this experience will certainly be taken into account when seeking solutions to existing conflicts,” the President of Azerbaijan said in his remarks, according to APA news agency.
Aliyev also stated that peace with Azerbaijan will allow Armenia to become a transit country.
“We are closely working on the expansion of the Middle Corridor, which also passes through the territory of Armenia. For the first time in the history of its independence, Armenia could become a transit country. It is not yet one. Thanks to this, we will be able to establish a direct connection between the main part of Azerbaijan and our exclave, the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic,” he said.
He also noted that Azerbaijan has removed restrictions on the transportation of goods entering Armenia from different directions.
“We have lifted restrictions on the transportation of goods entering Armenia from various directions. We have resumed trade and significant exports of petroleum products to this country,” Aliyev added.
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Bust of French-Armenian WWII hero Missak Manouchian to be installed in Yerevan
The bust of French Resistance fighter and French national hero, Missak Manouchian, will be installed in one of the parks in central Yerevan that bears his name.
The Yerevan City Council approved the decision on March 12.
Missak Manouchian, a French-Armenian poet, led a small group of foreign Resistance fighters, which included many Jews, against the Nazi occupation, carrying out attacks on Nazi forces and acts of sabotage in Nazi-occupied France in 1943.
French President Emmanuel Macron said in 2023 that Manouchian “embodies the universal values” of France and “carries a part of our greatness.”
The WWII hero was executed by the Nazis on February 21, 1944, a year after being arrested.
Missak Manouchian was pantheonized in France in 2024.
Manouchian’s wife Mélinée was also a resistance fighter.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and French President Emmanuel Macron attended the ceremony in 2024 when Manouchian was interred in the mausoleum housing France’s national heroes.
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Central Bank of Armenia: exchange rates and prices of precious metals – 12-03-
The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 12 March, USD exchange rate up by 0.17 drams to 377.44 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 1.65 drams to 436.25 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate up by 0.0197 drams to 4.7633 drams. GBP exchange rate down by 1.8 drams to 505.51 drams.
The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.
Gold price down by 303 drams to 62888 drams.
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