CIVILNET

Vagharshapat, Armenia’s fourth largest city, held municipal elections on November 16th. The ruling party Civil Contract kept its position in the district with 48% of the votes followed by Victory Alliance with 32%. Ahead of the election day, electoral observers reported violations of financial transparency rules. The Armenia Project intern Martina Sanna joined the Civilnet team to report on the day.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ

📍 Ruling Civil Contract party candidate wins Vagharshapat municipal election. 📍 A U.S. State Department official is in Yerevan to discuss Armenia-US mutual interests including the “Trump Road.” 📍 Armenia’s Regulatory Commission revoked the operating license for Electric Networks of Armenia, owned by billionaire Samvel Karapetyan. #CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #dailyarmenia

📍 Construction of a major new transit route across southern Armenia is set to begin in the second half of next year, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced.📍 Armenia could revoke the operating license of the country’s main power company, marking the latest escalation in the government’s efforts to seize the utility.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #civilnetbusiness

In recent months, developments in Armenia’s domestic political life have increasingly reflected a serious democratic backslide. The country’s law enforcement and judicial systems have been instrumentalized to serve the ruling party’s internal political interests. Selective justice, the use of disproportionate legal measures, and illegal wiretapping to persecute political opponents have become commonplace features of Armenia’s political landscape.

The authorities — Prime Minister Pashinyan and other ruling party figures — make little effort to conceal their involvement in these processes. These actions are often framed as necessary steps to counter external interference and hybrid threats, according to the government and pro-government actors.

These worrying developments have been a consistent theme in our Democracy Watch reports over the past several months. Another recurring theme is the silence — or, at times, even support — of parts of Armenia’s civil society for the ongoing normalization of anti-democratic practices in the name of “protecting democracy.”

While many civil society groups and organizations have been vocal in condemning the abuse of law enforcement, the judiciary, and the broader state apparatus by the ruling party to neutralize political opponents, others have chosen to turn a blind eye, rationalize, or downplay these actions.

📍 Death cases in Armenian penitentiaries have sharply risen this year, reaching 20 so far, including eight suicides, compared to just 12 cases in 2024.📍 Armenia should impose a permanent ban on the export of used catalytic converters and tighten vehicle emissions standards to combat growing air pollution, according to a report by the International Energy Agency and the European Union.📍 Saudi Arabia has expressed strong interest in investing in Armenia’s economy, a senior Armenian lawmaker said.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #dailyarmenia

📍 In a rare comment regarding Armenia, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that Ankara is proceeding with the normalization of relations with Yerevan.📍 Armenia is going to terminate the electricity distribution license of the Electric Networks of Armenia, a company owned by Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan. This is the latest development in the saga over the power grid seizure that began in June.📍 EXPLAINER: Can Armenia achieve visa-free travel to EU? https://www.civilnet.am/en/news/984741/explainer-can-armenia-achieve-visa-free-travel-to-eu/ #CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #dailyarmenia

In this week’s Insights, Eric Hacopian analyses Prime Minister Pashinyan’s remarks at the Paris Peace Forum on Armenia–Turkey relations and possible EU membership. He also discusses the arrest and release of prominent defense attorney Aleksandr Kochubayev, and reflects on the sainthood of Archbishop Maloyan at the Vatican — questioning what these events reveal about Armenia’s politics.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #insightswitherichacopian

📍 For the first time since the breakup of the Soviet Union, a freight train from Russia has arrived in Armenia, traveling through Azerbaijani and Georgian territory. 📍 Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan responded to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s recent revisionist statement about the naming of Lake Sevan.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #dailyarmenia

📍 Ruben Vardanyan, a jailed Armenian billionaire and former head of the Nagorno-Karabakh cabinet, has refused the services of a lawyer appointed by Azerbaijani authorities during his trial in Baku.📍 The European Union has presented Armenia with a visa liberalization action plan, a roadmap of reforms the country must implement to secure visa-free travel for its citizens to EU member states.📍 A senior Georgian lawmaker has accused Armenian lawmakers of backing an EU-linked resolution that questioned the legitimacy of Georgia’s leadership and elections.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #dailyarmenia

📍 Armenian Defense Minister Suren Papikyan has dismissed media speculations that the country had agreed to buy a dozen Russian-made fighter jets from India.📍 An Armenian villager was arrested and charged with the murder of his three-year-old son who was reported missing more than a week ago. Hundreds of volunteers and police officers were involved in the search for the lost child.📍 Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev once again called for the return of Azerbaijanis to Armenia and repeated revisionist claims about Armenian history and territory. This was the first such instance since the August peace summit in Washington.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #dailyarmenia