- Shoghik Galstian
For the first time since 2022, Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan will not attend an annual international conference in Turkey that brings together dozens of foreign leaders.
Mirzoyan has participated in the last four conferences held in the Turkish resort city of Antalya, speaking during panel discussions and holding bilateral meetings with his Turkish and Azerbaijani counterparts.
The Armenian Foreign Ministry declined to comment on Tuesday on his decision to skip the upcoming Antalya Diplomacy Forum. According to the forum’s official website, one of Mirzoyan’s deputies, Vahan Kostanian, will be its sole Armenian participant this time around.
Ruben Rubinian, a parliament vice-speaker who has represented Yerevan in normalization talks with Ankara, confirmed that he too will not travel to Antalya later this week. He gave no reason for his absence.
“Why should I go there every time?” Rubinian told journalists.
Rubinian and Turkish envoy Serdar Kilic held several rounds of negotiations that resulted in the signing in 2022 of two bilateral agreements. One of those agreements calls for the opening of the Turkish-Armenian border for Armenian and Turkish diplomatic passport holders as well as citizens of third countries. Ankara has been reluctant to implement it so far. It has for decades made the normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations conditional on a resolution of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict acceptable to Azerbaijan.
Turkish media reported late last year that Ankara is planning to partially open the border in March, ahead of Armenia’s parliamentary elections slated for June. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan mentioned the elections and praised Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian in that context in January.
Armenian opposition leaders responded by accusing the Turkish government of meddling in Armenia’s internal affairs. Pashinian’s political allies insisted that Fidan did not endorse the Armenian leader.
Even before Fidan’s statement, Pashinian’s political opponents claimed that Turkey and Azerbaijan will go to great lengths to help his Civil Contract party win the polls. They have for years said that Pashinian is making unilateral concessions to the two Turkic allies in hopes of clinging to power. The premier’s political team denies this.
Gegham Manukian, an Armenian opposition lawmaker, claimed Pashinian’s government has finally realized that its high-level participation in the Antalya forum is “meaningless” in the absence of Turkey’s tangible “steps to end its hostile actions against Armenia.”
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Armenian Officials Downplay Tensions With Russia
Senior lawmakers representing Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s party played down on Tuesday Armenia’s lingering tensions with Russian that were exposed during his most recent visit to Moscow.
“We do not pose any threat to Russia and we are not going to become a threat, there is no such intention,” parliament speaker Alen Simonian told reporters. “There are some issues, such issues exist between all countries. These issues arise and increase in number at one point, [but then] decrease. The politicians’ job is to discuss and resolve these issues.”
The remarks contrasted with Simonian’s April 4 statement that Armenia will leave Russian-led defense and trade blocs if Russia raises the concessional price of its natural gas or imposes other economic sanctions on Yerevan. The Russian Foreign Ministry scoffed at the threat last week.
Simonian responded to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s stern warnings to Pashinian publicly issued during their April 1 talks in Moscow. In particular, Putin warned Armenian authorities against barring what he called pro-Russian opposition groups or politicians from running in Armenia’s upcoming parliamentary elections.
He also said Yerevan’s moves to eventually join the European Union are “not compatible” with Armenia’s continued membership in the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), a Russian-led trade bloc. He noted that Russia remains Armenia’s most important trading partner and supplies natural gas to the South Caucasus state at a significant discount.
One of Simonian’s deputies, Ruben Rubinian, insisted on Tuesday that Putin did not threaten to raise the Russian gas price for Armenia.
“The Russian president did not hint at that,” he said. “Such claims are made by some Armenian political forces and the media outlets subordinate to them.”
Pashinian similarly sought to downplay the tensions with Moscow last Thursday, saying that Russian-Armenian relations are merely undergoing “constructive transformation.”
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RFE/RL – Oppositionist Arrested After Yerevan Rally
- Karlen Aslanian
A political ally of billionaire Samvel Karapetian was arrested on Tuesday on charges which his opposition movement described as politically motivated and linked to its weekend massive rally in Yerevan.
Gohar Ghumashian is a senior member of Karapetian’s Strong Armenia party widely expected to be the main opposition contender in Armenia’s upcoming parliamentary elections. The Anti-Corruption Committee (ACC) accused the young woman as well as another person of violating a legal ban on election-related benevolence.
The law-enforcement agency claimed that she handed out cash to one voter and promised “service on preferential terms” to another last month. It did not elaborate. In another statement issued later in the day, the ACC said it has asked a court to move Ghumashian to house arrest because she has three young children.
One of the children was born less than two months ago. Senior Strong Armenia figures emphasized this fact when they rushed to condemn Ghumashian’s arrest before the ACC revealed the charges levelled against her. They claimed that her “political persecution” is the result of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s knee-jerk reaction to a large crowd pulled by Karapetian’s party on Saturday.
“Another manifestation of Pashinian’s panic after the Big Rally,” Narek Karapetian, the tycoon’s nephew and right-hand man, said in a social media post. “Fearful of Samvel Karapetian, Pashinian sent law-enforcement officers to detain a breastfeeding mother of multiple children.”
“This is a consequence of our successful rally,” Gohar Meloyan, another senior Strong Armenian member, told reporters.
The rally held in Yerevan’s Liberty Square on Saturday featured Karapetian’s first video address to supporters since his arrest last June. He had issued only statements messages until then.
The 60-year-old tycoon, who was moved to house arrest in December, initially faced an accusation stemming from his criticism of Pashinian’s controversial attempts to depose Catholicos Garegin II, the supreme head of the Armenian Apostolic Church. Investigators also charged him with tax evasion, fraud and money laundering after he announced in July plans to challenge Pashinian in the 2026 elections.
Karapetian’s trial is scheduled to start on Wednesday. His lawyers said they will ask the presiding judge to release him from house arrest.
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Armenian, French and Lithuanian officials discuss Armenia–EU cooperation, regi
A trilateral meeting was held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia on April 14, with the participation of Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia Vahan Kostanyan, Minister Delegate for European Affairs at the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs Benjamin Haddad, and Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Audra Plepytė.
The meeting focused on issues related to the Armenia–France and Armenia–Lithuania bilateral agendas, efforts to combat disinformation, as well as cooperation within the framework of the Armenia–EU strategic partnership, the Armenian Foreign Ministry said in a readout.
The representatives of France and Lithuania reaffirmed their support for Armenia’s European aspirations.
A number of issues related to preparations for the upcoming European Political Community Summit in Yerevan were also discussed. The French and Lithuanian counterparts reaffirmed their willingness to support Armenia in organizing the summit in the best possible way.
In the context of regional developments, Deputy Minister Kostanyan presented the positive developments taking place in the South Caucasus as a result of the Washington agreements, referring to the Armenia–Turkey and Armenia–Azerbaijan settlement processes.
During the meeting, views were also exchanged on a number of issues on the international agenda.
Published by Armenpress, original at
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Armenian Social Affairs and Labor Minister, Iranian Ambassador discuss deepeni
Armenian Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Arsen Torosyan received Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Armenia Khalil Shirgholami on Tuesday, the ministry said.
Torosyan stated that the development of friendly and trust-based relations with Iran remains one of the Armenian government’s foreign policy priorities.
He also expressed condolences over the deaths in Iran as a result of recent military operations and noted that Armenia is deeply concerned about the regional situation, stressing that peace and stability are of vital importance.
Ambassador Shirgholami thanked the government and people of Armenia for their support during the current situation.
The sides discussed prospects for expanding cooperation in labor and social protection, including labor migration, human capital and skills development.
The ambassador also noted that the growth of registered jobs in Armenia in recent years is impressive.
Both parties emphasized the importance of interdepartmental cooperation and expressed readiness to make efforts toward the effective implementation of jointly planned programs.
Published by Armenpress, original at
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Armenpress: Armenian FM, EU Commissioner discuss Armenia–EU cooperation, secur
Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan met with the European Commissioner for Defence and Space in Brussels on April 14, the foreign ministry said in a readout.
The sides noted with satisfaction the active expansion of the Armenia–EU partnership.
They exchanged views on prospects for cooperation in the security and defence sector. Both parties highlighted Armenia’s significant progress in implementing democratic reforms, as well as the adoption of the Armenia–EU Strategic Partnership Agenda.
The sides also discussed upcoming high-level events to be held in Yerevan in May, including the agenda of the Armenia–EU summit.
Mirzoyan and the EU Commissioner further exchanged views on regional developments. The Armenian Foreign Minister presented efforts aimed at further institutionalizing peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Published by Armenpress, original at
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Verelq: An entire government against an 18-year-old
Late yesterday evening, 18-year-old Davit Minasyan was transferred from Nair Medical Center to the Correctional Facility. This was reported by the lawyer of the youth, Lusine Martirosyan.
“An entire state resource was focused on just an 18-year-old young man, and what is being done to Davit now is not the same as what is being done to our compatriots in Baku prison…”, the lawyer wrote.
To remind, Davit was arrested in the incident of St. Anna church. Apart from the fact that Nikol Pashinyan’s bodyguard hit him, he received a concussion and other injuries, he also has other health problems. However, the court did not take him to house arrest and the teenager was taken to the medical center from the first day.
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Ara Abrahamyan will be replaced
“Hraparak” daily writes:
According to some information, the Russian circles are considering the change of Ara Abrahamyan, the president of the Union of Armenians of Russia.
Ara Abrahamyan has been the president of this public organization since 2000. In 2003, he was elected the president of the international union of Armenian non-governmental organizations “World Armenian Congress”, created the Russia-Argentina Council of Businessmen and is currently its co-chairman from the Russian side.
He is also the co-chairman of the Franco-Russian Association. He was re-elected several times as the chairman of the NGO, but there are reports that now the Russian authorities are dissatisfied with him and are discussing candidates for his replacement.
Russian sources say that the most likely is the candidacy of Viktor Soghomonyan, the former press secretary of the second president, the former official of the office. The versions of Kamo Avagumyan and Karen Shahnazarov are also discussed.
However, Kamo Avagumyan, the owner of “Avalon” company and the representative of “Mercedes” in Russia, is more engaged in business, and community issues may be subordinated, and Shahnazarov is more interested in Russian interests than in Armenian ones.
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Armenia before the election. It is not the Russian Federation that forces us to take sides, but the West
Since the West fails to deceive Russia and steal its victory, in order to maintain the hegemony of the United States, there is no need to talk about peace anymore, there is no need for a Nobel Prize anymore, there is no need for Orbán anymore.
Now it is necessary for Hungary to stop playing on two strings and stand by the collective West and prepare for war against Russia.
We note that Hungary also failed in the policy of playing on two strings, because the collective West does not allow any state to play on two strings in such a tense geopolitical situation. For the West, now you are either its ally, you are its supporter and you are preparing to go to war against Russia, or you are its enemy, there is simply no other way.
We live in such times when each state should be able to position itself correctly in such a geopolitical struggle, understanding its own state interests, and the West will not allow it to play on two strings, and those states that were wrongly positioned will pay a very high price for their political miscalculations.
Now Armenia is also facing a choice, and it is not Russia that is forcing Armenia to take sides, but the West is imposing such steps and actions on Armenia, as a result of which Russia is forced to present a political demand to Armenia in order to understand whether Armenia is now its ally or whether it is joining the camp of its enemies.
Dear people, actually the situation is quite difficult, and it is time for us to realize that the only ally, friend is Russia, and we will not get anywhere good by playing on two strings. Playing on two strings, the West will use Armenia for its geopolitical purposes and leave us alone with our very difficult problems. It is time to stand by our state interests, that is, by the side of the Russian Federation.
This is dictated by the state interest of Armenia, and we are obliged to realize this.
Mher Avetisyan
Chairman of the Russian-Armenian Business Council, Observer Council, founder of the “Together” people’s movement
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Book: Aram Mrjoian on Navigating Armenian History in His Debut Novel ‘Waterlin
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