Armenian citizens currently have no reason to be concerned about possible changes in gas tariffs, according to officials. 

Armenia continues to receive gas supplies under normal conditions and at the existing tariff, Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure David Khudatyan has said, referring to media reports about a potential gas price hike by Russia, which supplies natural gas.

“In my view, the media commentary is much worse than what is actually happening on the ground. On the ground, we are receiving gas supplies in a normal manner, at the established tariff, and we are working with our partners as we have done before. There is nothing additional to comment on,” Khudatyan said.

In response to a journalist’s question on whether there has been any official request regarding a tariff revision, the minister said there is no official information other than what has already been reported in the media.

He noted that on May 27, Russian Energy Minister Sergey Tsivilyov sent a letter to Armenia’s Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure. In the letter, the Russian side reportedly threatened that it might unilaterally suspend or cancel agreements on the supply of gas, petroleum products, and rough diamonds if Yerevan continues its EU accession process.

“No, there is no official information regarding a tariff revision other than what was published in the media about a month ago. We received a letter with that content through our Russian partner ministry, but I must again emphasize that we are managing our risks, including those related to possible price increases. Allow me not to go into too much detail, but we are managing our risks because the situation is not exactly as it may appear at first glance,” the minister noted.

Asked whether Armenia could face European-level gas prices in the future, Khudatyan said he could not predict future developments but stressed that citizens currently have no reason for concern.

“I cannot say what will happen in the future. I can say that at this moment, citizens have no reason for concern in this regard,” he said.

He added that the current contract between Armenia and Russia expires after the winter season, and contractual relations are continuing normally for now.

“We have a contract, and it expires after the winter season. There must be grounds for unilateral termination of the contract. We are working normally; we are receiving gas at the same tariff and under the same supply schedule as before,” he said.

According to the minister, working relations with Russian partners remain at a good level and there have been no changes in this regard.

“We have very good working relations with our partners. Nothing has changed in our working relations,” he noted.

Russia currently sells natural gas to Armenia for $177.50 per thousand cubic meters, while in Europe it costs up to $633 per thousand cubic meters.

Earlier in May, Moscow warned that Armenia could lose preferential Russian gas prices if it leaves the Eurasian Economic Union.

Armenia has potential alternative sources of natural gas imports, and current consumer tariffs will remain unchanged until early 2027 even if the price of Russian gas rises, the head of the country’s energy regulator said on Thursday.

According to Mesrop Mesropyan, Chairman of Armenia’s Public Services Regulatory Commission, even if the price of Russian natural gas supplied to Armenia increases, current consumer tariffs will remain in effect until the beginning of 2027.

“There are alternatives in the region—from Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, and Iran. Naturally, we would purchase gas from any country that sells it and from which existing infrastructure allows us to import it,” Mesropyan said at a press briefing in parliament.

He noted that around 30–35% of Armenia’s electricity is generated by thermal power plants, meaning that any increase in gas prices would have a negative impact on electricity tariffs.

“The existence of solar power plants alone helps ensure that we do not face the severe energy crisis experienced in the 1990s. Investments in energy storage facilities will also help mitigate these challenges,” he added.

Russia’s Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance (Rosselkhoznadzor) will impose restrictions on the import of quarantine-regulated products from Armenia starting June 12, 2026.

According to a statement issued by Rosselkhoznadzor, the measure applies both to products manufactured in Armenia and to goods shipped from the country.

The agency said transit of such products through Russian territory to other member states of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) will also be restricted. “The ban will remain in force until a special algorithm is developed to ensure the safety and traceability of the supplied products,” the statement said.

Rosselkhoznadzor noted that the decision was taken due to the repeated detection of quarantine pests in imported goods.

“Since May of this year, the service has gradually restricted imports of certain categories of Armenian quarantine-regulated products and has repeatedly informed the Armenian side about disruptions in supplies. Despite this, detections of quarantine organisms have continued. In June, three cases of infestation by the khapra beetle were identified in walnuts, dried peaches and dried tomatoes imported from Armenia,” Rosselkhoznadzor said.

According to the agency, this allegedly indicates insufficient oversight by Armenia’s competent authority and undermines confidence in the country’s phytosanitary certification system.

 “The ineffectiveness of Armenia’s Plant Quarantine and Protection Service poses a threat to the phytosanitary well-being of Russia and the EAEU,” Rosselkhoznadzor said, adding that the khapra beetle is a storage pest that is not present in Russia.

The agency stated that the pest can damage grain crops, oilseed crops, legumes, industrial crops and their by-products, as well as forest, ornamental and other plants.

“It can infest grain storage facilities, transport vehicles, raw material and flour warehouses, mills, feed plants, confectionery factories, malt storage facilities and other sites. It can destroy up to 70% of stored products,” the statement said.

Rosselkhoznadzor also noted that economic damage to the Russian Federation could arise not only from crop losses and the costs of containment and eradication measures, but also from the possible loss of export markets in countries where the khapra beetle is not classified as a quarantine pest.

In recent months, Russia has restricted or completely banned imports of a number of Armenian products, citing the discovery of various violations. Such measures intensified in the period leading up to Armenia’s parliamentary elections.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has taken a one-day leave on June 12, his office announced.

A severe hailstorm that struck Shirak Province on June 10 caused extensive damage to agricultural land in the Akhuryan municipality.

Local authorities are currently assessing and documenting the losses.

According to Akhuryan municipal officials, wheat and barley fields in 14 villages within the municipality were affected by the hailstorm. In some villages, strong winds accompanying the storm also damaged the roofs of homes and shattered windows.

Akhuryan Mayor Zaven Manukyan, together with staff from the municipality’s Agriculture and Environmental Protection Department, visited the affected settlements to inspect the damage.

For uninsured farmland, municipal specialists will evaluate the extent of the damage, prepare official reports, and submit them to the government for consideration. 

The assessment process is ongoing. The Shirak Regional Commission, working in cooperation with local community commissions, will review all reported incidents, conduct field inspections, and determine the full extent of the damage. Separate assessments will also be carried out to evaluate losses affecting agricultural land and crops.

Following heavy rainfall on June 11, the Aparan Reservoir reached 100% capacity, and the water level of Lake Sevan rose by 2 cm within a few hours, according to meteorologists.

“Yesterday’s heavy rainfall left its mark on water resources. The Aparan Reservoir is filled to 100%, and the water level of Lake Sevan has risen by 2 cm compared with the previous day,” Levon Azizyan, Director of the Hydrometeorology and Monitoring Center, said in a social media statement.

Due to abundant precipitation recorded in 2025 and 2026, high storage levels have been observed in all major reservoirs in Armenia, creating favorable conditions for water resource management, according to officials.

Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure David Khudatyan briefed lawmakers on the matter during a joint committee session on the 2025 budget report.

“Due to precipitation in 2025 and 2026, all major reservoirs in the republic have reached near-full capacity. In some places, we have already carried out water releases due to overflow beyond capacity,” the minister said.

The minister also spoke about the Vedi Reservoir, noting that preparatory works for its operation are ongoing. He said that the processes of filling and water release of the reservoir are being carried out in stages to ensure the necessary strength of the dam and reservoir bed.

The Vedi Reservoir is the largest in Armenia, and its construction was completed in early 2025. The first phase of filling began officially in April 2025.

“We are managing this process of phased filling and emptying so that the dam and the reservoir bed can reach the required level of strength needed for full-capacity filling,” Khudatyan said, adding that the process is a routine technological requirement.

Referring to the Kaps Reservoir construction project, the minister said that development works are continuing. Following the termination of the contract with the Chinese contractor, a new design is being developed that envisions a reservoir capacity approximately 2.5 times larger than the previous version.

Construction of the Kaps Reservoir on the Akhuryan River in Shirak Province is currently suspended, as in December 2025 the Armenian government initiated the process of terminating the contract with the Chinese company Shanxi Construction Investment Group due to failure to fulfill contractual obligations and delays in work execution.

Meteorologists previously said that following heavy rainfall on June 11, the Aparan Reservoir reached 100% capacity, and the water level of Lake Sevan rose by 2 cm within a few hours.

Most weather-related road damage in Yerevan has been repaired, according to Mayor Tigran Avinyan.

“Weather conditions in Yerevan have set records over the past 20 years in terms of precipitation and temperature fluctuations, which has mainly led to various issues on road sections,” Avinyan told Members of Parliament during a 2025 budget report discussion at a joint committee hearing.

The mayor noted that the majority of these problems have already been addressed.

“I can say that they have already been resolved by about 95 percent,” he said.

Avinyan also emphasized that in sections where the Yerevan City Hall carried out road repairs or pothole patching, road quality has been maintained.

UK Deputy Ambassador to the OSCE James Ford has welcomed ODIHR’s preliminary findings that Armenia’s parliamentary elections were orderly and professionally conducted, congratulated Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, and affirmed UK support for strengthening democratic resilience.

“I thank our Armenian colleagues for their update on the outcome of Armenia’s parliamentary elections. The United Kingdom welcomes ODIHR’s preliminary findings, which note that election day was orderly and professionally conducted, with voting largely proceeding smoothly across polling stations. We commend Armenia’s Central Electoral Commission for administering the elections, and congratulate Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on his victory,” Ford said in a statement to the OSCE.

“The UK values ODIHR’s important role in offering independent assessments of electoral processes and was proud to be among the 42 participating States that contributed observers to the mission in Armenia. We remain committed to supporting Armenia to strengthen its democratic resilience and trust that the authorities will engage constructively in addressing the areas identified by ODIHR for further strengthening electoral integrity for future elections. The UK looks forward to working with the new, democratically elected Armenian government to deliver on our Strategic Partnership, strengthen regional stability and develop closer relations with European partners,” he added. 

Yerevan City Hall is planning to impose “restrictions” on passenger vehicles, alongside the expansion of dedicated public transport lanes, in an effort to address traffic congestion in the Armenian capital.

The traffic problem in Yerevan had reached a point where Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan declared it a crisis in 2025 and urged officials to set up a task force to address it.

Yerevan Mayor Tigran Avinyan briefed lawmakers on the city’s traffic management at a joint committee hearing on the 2025 budget report.

“Regarding Yerevan’s traffic congestion, the Yerevan City Hall has created a specialized institution — the Traffic Management Center — which has been staffed with appropriate professionals,” Avinyan said.

A pilot program is currently analyzing vehicle flows into the city.

“Based on all these calculations, a program of changes will be presented to us this year on what needs to be done,” he said.

Mayor Avinyan said the main cause of traffic congestion in Yerevan is the economic growth recorded in recent years, which has led to a sharp increase in the number of passenger vehicles.

“The first and main reason is economic growth, which has led to a massive increase in the number of passenger cars,” the mayor said.

Even the continued development of public transport is not sufficient to solve the congestion problem on its own, the mayor warned.

“Public transport cannot operate according to its schedule if we do not have restrictions on passenger cars,” Avinyan emphasized.

The mayor said that Yerevan plans to adopt approaches used in European cities.

“Certain restrictions must definitely be introduced for passenger cars, and they must be replaced with dedicated public transport lanes,” he said.

Avinyan added that, based on ongoing studies, locations for parking facilities, traffic management mechanisms, and restrictions on private transport will be determined.

He also noted that preliminary results are expected in September–October 2026, while practical implementation of the program is planned to begin in 2027.