In today's podcast, CivilNet sits down with writer and producer Nyree Abrahamyan to discuss her work documenting stories from Artsakh. The conversation centers on her cookbook, Artsakh: A Taste of Home, which preserves a threatened culture through recipes and personal narratives collected in the wake of the 2023 Karabakh ethnic cleansing. She explains how storytelling, from her award-winning Country of Dust podcast, to this cookbook, serves as an act of resistance against cultural erasure. Nyree shares her experience listening to displaced families, reveals the significance of food as a keeper of memory, and believes that kitchens around the world can become active bearers of culture. #CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ

📍 Spayka, Armenia’s largest food exporter, has incurred losses exceeding $2 million after Russian authorities began delaying dozens of its trucks last week.📍 The government plans to enforce new legislation requiring all movie theaters to provide Armenian-language dubbing or subtitles for foreign films starting January. As of now, most cinemas screen foreign films either in the original English without Armenian captions or with Russian dubbing, leaving monolingual speakers limited to local productions.📍 Armenia beat Ireland 2:1 in a football World Cup qualifier. After the win in Yerevan, the team sits second in its group, with four games to go in the campaign.Credits: Ruptly#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #dailyarmenia

📍 A Georgian man who fought for Ukraine against Russia was detained in Armenia last week. He is facing a potential extradition on Moscow’s warrant, and though Armenia might choose to provide him asylum, human rights activists say the situation sets a dangerous precedent.📍 The expected full signing of a peace agreement between Yerevan and Baku would improve Armenia’s economic outlook and attract foreign investment, the country’s Central Bank chief said. #CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #dailyarmenia

Since Armenia’s loss in the 2020 Karabakh War, the issue of a road through Armenia’s southern Syunik region has been а subject of heated debate. The purpose of this road is to connect mainland Azerbaijan in Armenia’s east with its exclave of Nakhichevan west of Armenia. This short explainer details the nuances of the road and what the implications are for Armenia.Credits: Ruptly

📍 A meeting between special envoys of Armenia and Turkey is expected in Yerevan in the coming days as part of the normalization process, the Armenian foreign ministry announced.📍 Baku’s pressure on Yerevan to change its constitution could prove counterproductive, according to Belgium-based International Crisis Group. Foreign diplomats have warned Baku that its demands could easily backfire, but this does not seem to be taken seriously, the report noted.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #dailyarmenia

📍 Armenia switched lawyers to Foley Hoag from Arnold & Porter ahead of a $500 million arbitration case over the government’s attempted takeover of the country’s power grid.📍 Russia has reportedly halted over 100 trucks from delivering Armenian fresh produce to the country, marking the latest trade disruption between Moscow and Yerevan.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #civilnetbusiness

In this episode, CivilNet is joined by Arevik Vardanyan, co-founder of the inaugural Line Armenian Architecture Biennial. We discuss how her team launched Armenia's first-ever month-long festival dedicated to reimagining architecture and public space. Guided by the theme “Up in the Air,” the event explores the invisible forces, from memory to pollution, that shape urban life. The biennial's open call attracted over 170 applications from 38 countries, all aiming to spark public discourse on how our surroundings influence daily life. Throughout the month, selected installations will be scattered across Yerevan, accompanied by a full program of walking tours, symposiums, exhibitions, and a special publication. #CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ

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 to halt any actions to seize “Electric Networks of Armenia.”

The controversy centers on the Electricity Networks of Armenia (ENA), the country’s sole power distributor owned by Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan. In June 2025, shortly after Karapetyan publicly backed the Armenian Apostolic Church, he was jailed on chargesof calling for the government’s overthrow. Parliament then rushed through a law enabling ENA’s takeover, allowing regulators to strip its license and appoint state administrators without court approval. Critics see the move as retaliation, warning it could trigger costly arbitration and further erode Armenia’s investment climate.

In a press conference, Pashinyan stated that any government official who disagrees with his stance on the matter should resign. “I am the government … no one can have a position that contradicts my position,” he said. “If there are people in the government who have a stance that contradicts my own, they should write their resignation and leave the buildings immediately, and if not, I will remove them myself.”

Sharpening surgical scalpels on barber’s leather straps was once the reality in Armenia’s hospitals, an observation that inspired Dr. Krikor Deramerian to rethink how the diaspora can be involved in building lasting solutions in the country. He now works to shift Armenia’s healthcare from one-off aid trips to sustainable, preventive care that empowers local physicians and improves patient outcomes. In this conversation, he also considers what makes diaspora engagement meaningful when it’s tied to real systemic change.0:38- The story behind Med-Aid2:48- Different approaches to medical aid in Armenia 5:41- Capacity building for physicians in Armenia 8:03- Being the change you want to see 11:38- What success means for Med-Aid 13:40- Importance of outcome-based care#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ

In this comprehensive interview with CivilNet, European Union Ambassador to Armenia Vassilis Maragos discusses the dramatic expansion of EU engagement with Armenia, including a groundbreaking €2.5 billion investment commitment through 2027. The ambassador details major infrastructure projects like the North-South Highway and Caucasus transmission network, explains the ongoing visa liberalization dialogue that could enable visa-free travel to EU countries, and addresses the success of the EU monitoring mission at Armenia's border with Azerbaijan.Maragos also tackles challenging political questions about Armenia's democratic development, responding to opposition criticism while outlining EU support for judicial and police reforms. He discusses what it means for Armenia to be "EU directional" rather than focused solely on distant membership prospects, emphasizing concrete benefits already flowing from closer relations. The conversation concludes with the sensitive issue of Armenian hostages detained in Baku, where the ambassador expresses EU commitment to addressing humanitarian concerns through diplomatic channels.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ