General Samvel Babayan (Commander of the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army, 1992–1999) recently criticized the decision to purchase the French Caesar 6×6 self-propelled howitzers for the needs of the Armed Forces of Armenia, pointing to a number of technical and tactical shortcomings compared with other systems available on the market. In the general’s view, the French Caesar […]
By Tigran Grigoryan and Tatev Ghazaryan On October 3, Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan was sentenced to two years in prison under the Criminal Code for “making public calls aimed at seizing power, violating territorial integrity, or overthrowing the constitutional order, using publicly displayed works, mass media, or information and communication technologies.” The charge is based on an […]
By Tatev Ghazaryan The Anti-Corruption Committee recently closed a criminal investigation into alleged illegal donations to the ruling Civil Contract (CC) party in 2022. The case, which had been opened on the grounds of large-scale unlawful campaign contributions, was terminated without any prosecutions. This decision, coupled with clear violations in CC’s financing process, raises serious concerns about the […]
In Armenian media, one can often hear the claim made by some politicians and propagandists that on September 19–20, 2023, Artsakh did not fight and simply “surrendered without a shot.” Such narratives are spread by the Armenian authorities and by those close to them, as well as their affiliated media resources, with the aim of […]
The Regional Center for Democracy and Security has published a new report titled “The New Face of War: Lessons from the Russo-Ukrainian Conflict for Armenia.” The report examines how the nature of warfare is evolving, showing that modern conflicts mobilize not only armies but entire societies, economies, and information spaces, blurring the lines between the […]
By Tigran Grigoryan and Tatev Ghazaryan On September 8, Armenia’s political discourse sank to a new low when Artur Hovhannisyan, secretary of the ruling Civil Contract faction, launched a personal and sexist attack against opposition MP Taguhi Tovmasyan during a press briefing inside the National Assembly. The incident followed Hovhannisyan’s interruption of Tovmasyan’s earlier press […]
By Tigran Grigoryan #DemocracyWatch – Armenia’s Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan, has dismissed Liparit Drmeyan, the head of the Office of the Representative for International Legal Affairs. This move follows a public statement by the Prime Minister that Armenia will not comply with an emergency ruling from the Stockholm Arbitration Tribunal. The ruling had ordered Armenia […]
The Regional Center for Democracy and Security has published a new report titled “Narratives of Division: Ruling Party-Linked Hate Speech Against Karabakh Armenian Refugees.” The report explores how government-affiliated actors have fueled disinformation and hate speech, deepening societal divisions and undermining Armenia’s democratic resilience. Based on detailed analysis and interviews, the report reveals how harmful […]
By Aram Tadevosyan Democracy Watch – On May 29, during a government session, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, speaking about the condition of historical and cultural monuments, remarked that our churches are “turned into storage rooms”. “A person enters a church to have a spiritual experience, but instead sees someone’s old shoes, clothes, someone has brought their old […]
