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Publications

Publications

Resignations in Armenia Spark Debate over Judicial Independence and Democratic Integrity

By Tigran Grigoryan and Tatev Baghdasaryan Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government has faced a wave of resignations over the past two weeks, with several ministers and officials stepping down and some positions already filled. However, the circumstances surrounding these resignations have ignited controversy and raised serious constitutional concerns. In an interview with Public Television on […]

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Publications

Trump’s Return: Global Authoritarianism and Armenia’s Struggle for Democracy

By Karena Avedissian When Donald Trump won the presidential election in 2016, I was devastated––I didn’t get out of bed for two days, so unfathomable was the idea that an autocratic-minded serial sexual assaulter would be leading the U.S. After this election, however, despite the specter of harsher right-wing policies, accelerated dismantling of democratic institutions, […]

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Publications

Trump 2.0: Armenia’s foreign policy at a crossroads

By Tigran Grigoryan Following Donald Trump’s recent landslide victory in the U.S. presidential election, international observers and analysts are eager to assess what the next four years may mean for American foreign policy. Trump’s previous presidency reshaped U.S. global relations, ushering in an era marked by increased isolationism and unpredictability. For Armenia this shift in […]

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Publications

Instrumentalized and Alienated: Nagorno-Karabakh Armenian Refugees in Armenia

By Karena Avedissian The discourse around Armenian refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh in Armenia following the region’s ethnic cleansing by Azerbaijan in September 2023 highlights the troubling tendency for vulnerable refugee populations to be politicized. The plight of these refugees—marginalized by virtue of their displacement—has been overshadowed by how various actors in Armenia, from government officials to […]

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Publications

Parliamentary Chaos: Heated Exchange in Armenia’s National Assembly Raises Concerns

By Tigran Grigoryan and Karena Avedissian Last week, an incident in Armenia’s National Assembly overshadowed proceedings when a heated exchange erupted between Argishti Kyaramyan, head of the Investigative Committee, and Hovik Aghazaryan, a ruling party MP. The altercation began during Kyaramyan’s speech when an individual sitting at the ruling party’s benches heckled him. Kyaramyan responded directly to […]

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Democracy Watch

The Thin Line Between Public Service and Politics: Taron Chakhoyan’s Case

By Tatev Baghdasaryan and Karena Avedissian Recent concerns surrounding Taron Chakhoyan, Deputy Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister, have sparked debate over his compliance with the Armenian Code of Public Service. The issues primarily relate to his social media activity and alleged ties to media outlets affiliated to the ruling party. The position of Deputy […]

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Publications

Why Armenian Anti-Government Movements Fail: The Need for a Viable Opposition in Armenia

By Tigran Grigoryan This month, Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan attempted to reinvigorate his Tavush for Homeland movement with a rally in Yerevan’s Republic Square. Galstanyan had launched the movement in April, initially to protest the government’s approach to delimitation with Azerbaijan, and later to demand Prime Minister Pashinyan’s resignation. However, the rally signaled the movement’s decline. It […]

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Publications

RCDS Research Paper: Armenia’s Structural Dependence on Russia

Armenia’s relationship with Russia has shifted from alliance to hostility due to Russia’s security failures after the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War and its growing alignment with Azerbaijan, particularly during attacks in 2022 and 2023. Despite efforts to strengthen ties with the West, Armenia remains deeply dependent on Russia in key sectors like trade, energy, and security, […]

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Publications

Armenia’s Ruling Party Resists Amending Controversial Constitutional Clause

By Tigran Grigoryan and Karena Avedissian On September 19, the Constitutional Reform Council debated and ultimately rejected a proposal by the Union of Informed Citizens (UIC) to remove the constitutional provision that guarantees a stable majority in parliament before the 2026 elections. This provision, a central issue in discussions on electoral reforms, ensures a parliamentary […]

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