Speaker of Parliament of Armenia, Alen Simonyan, spoke by phone on Tuesday with Chairwoman of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, Valentina Matviyenko.

Simonyan congratulated Matviyenko on her birthday.

The speakers discussed interparliamentary relations and the bilateral agenda, according to a readout from the Armenian parliament’s press service.

Members of Parliament Arusyak Julhakyan and Alkhas Ghazaryan from the ruling Civil Contract faction have drafted a bill proposing amendments to the Electoral Code.

The bill introduces new grounds for declaring a ballot invalid. According to the proposal, in parliamentary elections and municipal council elections held under the proportional system, a ballot will be considered invalid if either the ballot paper or the envelope contains any markings or notes, or if the envelope includes any item other than the ballot itself. Under current regulations, the presence of another item in the envelope does not automatically invalidate the ballot.

The lawmakers also propose that the name of a political party alliance must not include personal names, the names of state or local self-government bodies, or any names that could be confusingly similar to them, including grammatical variations. In addition, the proposed rules would prohibit alliance names containing offensive or defamatory language.

The draft further stipulates that the chairperson of a district electoral commission must not hold any object while removing the envelope from the ballot box and extracting the ballot paper.

Parliament adopted at first reading the bill banning electoral blocs from using personal names.

The bill, co-authored by Civil Contract MPs Arusyak Julhakyan and Alkhaz Ghazaryan, was adopted with 66 votes in favor and 16 against.

The bill also introduces new grounds for declaring a ballot invalid. According to the proposal, in parliamentary elections and municipal council elections held under the proportional system, a ballot will be considered invalid if the envelope includes any item other than the ballot itself.

Lawmakers also propose that the name of a political party alliance running in the elections must not include personal names, the names of state or local self-government bodies, or any names that could be confusingly similar to them, including variations. In addition, the proposed rules would prohibit alliance names containing offensive or defamatory language.

The draft further stipulates that the chairperson of a district electoral commission must not hold any object while removing the envelope from the ballot box and extracting the ballot paper.

The bill was adopted amid an ongoing protest outside the parliament building by Strong Armenia Party members and supporters, who recently named their electoral bloc “Strong Armenia with Samvel Karapetyan” and intend to run for parliament. They argue that the new law is undemocratic and that such changes should not be made just two months ahead of the polls.

Both opposition parties in parliament, the Hayastan (Armenia) and Pativ Unem (I Have the Honor) blocs, opposed the bill.

MP Julhakyan, in response to the criticism, noted that the Venice Commission recommends against making changes shortly before elections; however, the changes in the bill she co-authored do not pertain to any of the Commission’s recommendations.

According to the Commission, it is not advised to implement modifications in the electoral system, the rules for membership in election commissions, or to alter electoral districts close to the elections. Julhakyan emphasized that the technical change proposed by them does not relate to any of these three areas.

Armenia’s Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, Arsen Torosyan, held a meeting on Tuesday with the Ambassador of Qatar to Armenia, Mansoor Abdullah Al-Sulaitin.

According to a statement from the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, several issues related to deepening bilateral cooperation in labor and social protection were discussed, with an emphasis on the importance of existing potential in strengthening collaboration between the two countries.

The discussion also addressed the implementation of obligations under the agreement on regulating the employment of Armenian citizens in the State of Qatar, signed by the governments of Armenia and Qatar. The parties highlighted the importance of continued efforts on labor migration and human capital development.

Additionally, priorities concerning persons with disabilities were discussed, particularly the implementation of the small-group home model, and the potential support of the State of Qatar in this process was considered.

At the conclusion of the meeting, both parties agreed to take the necessary steps to facilitate experience-sharing and the implementation of targeted programs in the sector.

Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan spoke by phone on Tuesday with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission Kaja Kallas.

According to the Foreign Ministry’s readout, Mirzoyan and Kallas discussed ongoing efforts aimed at the consistent implementation of the strategic agenda of the Armenia–EU partnership. They also reviewed the agenda for upcoming high-level visits and events, as well as related initiatives aimed at ensuring tangible and sustained results.

Mirzoyan and Kallas also exchanged views on developments in the Middle East and possible ways to resolve the situation.

The authorities announced plans to legally require broadcasters in Armenia to label audiovisual content created using artificial intelligence (AI) or other digital technologies.

Minister of High-Tech Industry Mkhitar Hayrapetyan presented the bill amending the “Audiovisual Media” law during an extraordinary session of the National Assembly.

The legislation aims to ensure that synthetic or AI-generated content is clearly identifiable to audiences.

Under the proposed law, the Television and Radio Commission will monitor compliance, and violations could result in fines of up to 300,000 Armenian drams.

The Government proposes addenda to the Law on Audiovisual Media.

According to the Minister of High-Tech Industry of the Republic of Armenia Mkhitar Hayrapetyan, with the adoption of the initiative, it is expected that broadcasters providing audiovisual media services, when broadcasting TV content or synthetic content generated by artificial intelligence or other digital technological solutions, must necessarily mark that the given material was generated by artificial intelligence tools, the press service of the Parliament said in a press release.

“The current legislation does not establish mandatory requirements for the identification or marking of synthetic content in the case of its creation or distribution. As a result, the consumer is often not informed that the content was created in whole or in part using artificial intelligence systems.

In these conditions, it is necessary to establish a clear legal definition of synthetic content and provide for mandatory marking requirements for audiovisual media service providers to ensure transparency of information and consumer awareness.”

The draft law proposes to enshrine in law the legal definition of synthetic content as audiovisual, audio or other information material that has been fully or partially generated or modified using artificial intelligence systems or generative technologies.

The initiative was debated in first reading at the NA extraordinary sitting convened on April 7 and adopted by voting.

In the first three months of the current year, 453,138 tourists visited Armenia, representing an 18.2% increase compared to the same period last year, according to Minister of Economy Gevorg Papoyan.

In a video posted on social media, the minister hailed what he described as the record-breaking results in the Armenian tourism sector.

“Specifically, 453,138 tourists visited Armenia in the first three months of this year. This is 18.2% higher—or more than 70,000 additional tourists—compared to the same period last year,” the minister said, noting that this is a record-breaking figure in the history of Armenia’s tourism statistics for the first quarter of any year.

Armenia will host the FIAS Sambo World Cup for the third consecutive year, with the 2026 edition set to take place on April 11–12 in Yerevan.

Mikayel Hayrapetyan, President of the Sambo Federation of Armenia, said at a press conference that all preparations have been completed and the country is ready to host the event.

A total of 570 athletes from 22 countries will participate in the competition. 

The competition will feature Sport Sambo, Combat Sambo, and Blind Sambo events for both men and women.

“For the third consecutive year, Armenia will host this championship. Our national teams are ready for the competition. I hope the athletes will delight our fans with their professionalism. Up to now, Armenia has always ranked among the top three or top five in the world in sambo competitions,” Hayrapetyan said.

Armenia previously hosted the 2024 and 2025 championships.

The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 7 April, USD exchange rate down by 0.15 drams to 376.47 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 0.06 drams to 434.9 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate down by 0.0109 drams to 4.757 drams. GBP exchange rate down by 0.28 drams to 498.48 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price down by 22 drams to 56154 drams.