🇦🇲 Mass Strikes in Armenia

🔻Yesterday, protesters led by Bagrat Srbazyan announced the start of a general strike across Armenia. The movement's leader called on everyone to join the rally.

▪️From early morning, people in various parts of Armenia began barricading roads, and in Yerevan, residents from several regions flooded the streets and avenues of the capital.

▪️The most important change was the joining of the youth to the protests. Practically all the main universities in Yerevan announced the suspension of the educational process, and the students went to join the main crowd.

▪️Today at 6:30 pm local time, the main event began on Republic Square, where Srbazyan again demanded the resignation of the government. He also said that the next rally will be on Sunday, and acts of civil disobedience are planned for tomorrow.

🔻However, assessing yesterday, it is highly likely that the Pashinyan administration will again try to simply wait out the main wave of strikes. The experience of Georgia suggests that the discontent of the population is not eternal, and this is what the authorities' policy will be based on.

So in this situation, it is important to understand how far the Armenians are willing to go to achieve their goal. If a further program and ways to fight the authorities are not defined, people may get tired of what is happening, which cannot be allowed.

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🇦🇲 Strikes and Protests in Armenia
Situation as of 2:00 PM on May 11, 2024

🔻In the morning, peaceful civilian strikes resumed in the Armenian capital Yerevan. People took to several streets and avenues, where they began blocking traffic.

▪️Similar rallies continued on Republic Square as well. Compared to yesterday, the number of citizens has decreased, but one should not forget that the main event will take place tomorrow evening.

▪️Against the backdrop of the visit of the country's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to school No. 7 in Yerevan, people wanted to block the approaches to the building. However, for the first time since the start of the march, law enforcement officers intervened today.

▪️In several districts of Yerevan, law enforcement officers began detaining protesters. As of 1:00 PM, the number of arrests exceeded 50 people, some of whom sustained bodily injuries.

❗️A characteristic change was that the security forces stopped refraining not only from the use of force, but also began to threaten all participants in the movement. There is an obvious attempt to intimidate the protesters and force them to disperse.

Judging by the intensity of the protest movement, large-scale strikes are not expected today. The participants of the movement are refraining from local strikes, apparently preparing for tomorrow's general rally led by Bagrat Srbazyan.

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🇦🇲✝️ Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has once again spoken out about representatives of the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC), calling them "agents of influence" whose issue will be resolved in the next two to three months.

🔻Even without considering the populism favored by the Armenian authorities, the words about the imminent resolution of the "church problem" should at least alarm the AAC representatives in the republic.

The role of the Church in Armenia is now extremely important, as the whole country is on the verge of fundamental changes. And the danger from the AAC for the Prime Minister and his henchmen remains high.

In the absence of a real political opposition, it is the religious leaders who have stood up for the people and marched on Yerevan, which has effectively made them a target for the Pashinyan administration.

❗️Of course, Archbishop Bagrat Srbazyan and those who supported him were forced to take this step, as inaction would have created even more problems. However, now there is no turning back.

Either the people, with the support of the Church, will be able to influence the domestic political processes, or the AAC faces an unpleasant fate, where the current authorities will deprive them of everything in a radical way or replace them with more compliant priests.
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🇦🇲 Anti-government protests in Armenia
Situation as of 6:00 PM on May 31, 2024

Protests against the government of Nikol Pashinyan and the uncontrolled ceding of territories to Azerbaijan continue in Armenia. Today, a new round of escalation was observed in the center of Yerevan.

▪️In the morning, protesters led by Archbishop Bagrat Galstyan, who heads the "Tavush for the Homeland" movement, picketed the building of the Prosecutor General's Office of Armenia. Then the protest moved to the neighboring building of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where Galstyan demanded a meeting with Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and ministry staff.

▪️The protest leader stated that if the MFA employees refuse to talk, the citizens have the right to consider them agents of the Turkish-Azerbaijani government.

▪️After that, police units began to push the protesters away from the Armenian MFA building. Protest leader Galstyan was hit in the stomach, some clergy were beaten. 29 people were subjected to harsh detentions.

🔻Against the backdrop of the events in Yerevan, it is impossible to get rid of the feeling that we have seen something similar before - persecution of the church as the last bastion of Armenian identity. And indeed, similar scenes were observed during the expulsion of Armenians from Artsakh and the destruction of religious sites by Azerbaijanis.

The current level of confrontation between the Armenian authorities and the church almost equates the Pashinyan government with the Aliyev administration in terms of goals and objectives. The only difference is the current methods.

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🇦🇲 Strikes and Protests in Armenia
Situation as of the end of June 1, 2024

🔻From early morning, a massive car rally began in Armenia as part of the general civil disobedience movement. Protesters set out from Yerevan towards Gyumri to hear a speech by the protest leader Bagrat Srbazyan before the local residents.

▪️Hundreds of cars with thousands of concerned Armenian citizens accompanied the archbishop. As the protesters approached Gyumri, there were attempts to block the movement of the columns, but they were unsuccessful.

▪️Almost simultaneously, Armenian citizens blocked the Vardenis - Sevan highway in the area of the settlement of Noratus. People set up their own cars in support of the movement, which the police tried to prevent, but also unsuccessfully.

▪️At 6 pm local time, Bagrat Srbazyan spoke at the main city square, where he called Nikol Pashinyan a liar manipulating the moods of unaware people. This is why the fight for justice began, according to the movement's leader.

❗️Anti-government actions continue. The organizers of the event manage to do the most important thing - to maintain the enthusiasm of the population for further protests and strikes, which periodically sweep across the country. Without people, there will be no movement, and they are still there, and their number is not decreasing.

Bagrat Srbazyan said that in the coming days the largest rally since the start of the actions will take place, which will allow saying that the goal has been achieved. It is still unclear what methods and means this will be implemented, but we think it will become clear soon.

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🇦🇲🇺🇸 It seems that the hidden beneficiary of the developments in Armenia has finally been revealed: the Americans are planning to elevate their relations with Armenia to the level of a strategic partnership.

📌 To understand what a strategic partnership means in this context, we can look at a similar agreement concluded between the UK and Kazakhstan.

In a straightforward manner, the British gained full access to practically all spheres of Kazakhstan's life, except the defense sector. And this was done without any resistance.

❗️Now the same is happening with Armenia. But in the White House, they have also made sure to include a military component in the agreement. That is, the Armenian authorities will hand over everything to the Americans without exaggeration.

There is no need to talk about what this development of events portends for Armenians and for Russia. But if we were to say it, then nothing good. However, perhaps now the Armenian authorities will be treated the way they deserve - as allies of the USA, and therefore our adversaries.
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🇦🇲 Protests in Armenia and clashes with police
Situation as of 10:00 pm on June 12

Anti-government protests continue in Armenia amid the ceding of territories to Azerbaijan. Today, there were violent clashes between protesters and police.

▪️Protest leader Bagrat Srbazyan called on protesters to gather at the National Assembly building during the government hour when Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan was speaking.

▪️Red berets cordoned off the National Assembly building. Armenian channels report that law enforcement officers from across the republic were brought to Yerevan, as evidenced by the police chevrons.

❗️After a few hours, the security forces began forcibly pushing back the protesters and using stun grenades.

▪️A photo circulated online showing an injured man who had his hand torn off. Later, a video appeared of him being loaded into an ambulance, and the medic asked for two more ambulances to be sent.

▪️According to the Armenian Ministry of Health, 55 people sought medical assistance.

▪️It is reported that about 98 people were detained. Armenian channels published videos of protesters being beaten in police vans.

▪️Opposition resources also published photos of the National Assembly building, where snipers were visible in the windows.

🔻The protests in Armenia are clearly escalating. The tough use of force by the police may be due to Pashinyan's uncertainty, who literally has to hide from the crowd of protesters. At the same time, the presence of Americans in Yerevan for negotiations and their obvious support for the Armenian authorities give the latter the opportunity to disperse the protests by any means.

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🇦🇲 On Attempts by Armenian Authorities to Justify Sabotage Reforms in the Army

The head of the Armenian parliamentary commission on defense issues, Andranik Kocharyan, stated that, it turns out, the republic has acquired a lot of weapons that cannot be discussed.

▪️This refers to Armenia's recent contract to purchase French CAESAR artillery systems and, in general, an attempt to diversify arms supplies.

▪️At the same time, Andranik considers the criticism that has been going on for the past few years against the Armenian Ministry of Defense to be unfounded. In addition to the allegedly secret arms purchases unknown to the public, the politician noted the "successful reforms" in the army after 2020, as well as the construction of new defense fortifications.

▪️In particular, this was a response to criticism about the lack of construction of a second line of defense and the surrender of strongholds in the Tavush region without the construction of new ones.

It should be recalled that after the surrender of four villages to Azerbaijan, Armenia lost not only strategic communications, but also important heights. Moreover, in the 2020 war, the Armenians repelled the attack of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces in this direction.

▪️Regarding reforms in the Armenian army, the situation is no less sad. After the defeat in the last war, under the guise of "reforms", a purge of the most combat-ready and experienced personnel who could pose a threat to the current political leadership is underway.

▪️And to talk about the latest reform in the Armenian Armed Forces known to the public is even ridiculous: changing the charter of the internal service and replacing the Soviet exclamation "Hurrah" with "Long live".

🔻Apparently, most likely, there are no "secret" arms deliveries to Armenia. The statements of the parliamentarian Andranik are another attempt to calm the population and create a false sense of security and protection. After all, it is obvious that the Armenian authorities refuse to fight and will now obediently fulfill all the conditions of Baku, including surrendering their territories and changing the Constitution for this purpose.

#Azerbaijan #Armenia
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🇺🇦🇦🇲 It is reported that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the so-called Ukraine invited foreign ambassadors to the Okhmatdyt hospital in Kyiv, which was damaged by a missile from the Ukrainian air defense.

Among the diplomats from Western countries, representatives of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Moldova were also noted.

Given the diplomatic difficulties of the Kyiv regime, the propaganda machine is using the tragedy of Okhmatdyt to lobby for the continuation of Western weapons supplies to the AFU. Especially since the NATO summit in Washington has started today, where representatives of all those countries whose ambassadors appeared at the hospital are heading.

🔻It is interesting that Armenian officials have supported the propaganda actions of the Kyiv regime more than once. Not long ago, the Ambassador of Armenia to the so-called Ukraine Vladimir Karapetyan and the head of one of the districts of Yerevan visited Bucha, where anti-Russian statements were made.

This and other similar gestures are designed to strengthen the course of the Armenian authorities towards friendship with the West and distancing from Russia.

However, the new "allies" of Armenia in the face of the United States, using joint events and state visits, incline the Armenians to fulfill all the demands of their longtime enemies. And the NATO summit in Washington will not be an exception either.
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🇦🇲🇷🇺 On Armenia's Refusal to Participate in CSTO Exercises

It has become known that Armenia will not send its representatives to the "Cobalt-2024" exercises of the special forces of the CSTO member states, which will be held on August 14-16 in Novosibirsk.

▪️The news of the refusal of Armenian representatives to participate in joint CSTO exercises is quite predictable, given the recent actions of the Armenian authorities, statements about "freezing participation" and refusal to pay membership fees.

▪️However, the media effect of such news is important for the Armenian government and its curators. After all, the US does not hide the goals of its policy in Armenia - the severance of ties with Russia.

▪️To this end, the Americans, as well as the Armenian authorities themselves, are shifting the responsibility for Armenia's defeat in the war with Azerbaijan onto Russia. At the same time, Washington is encouraging the speedy signing of peace between the countries on Turkish-Azerbaijani terms.

🔻The Armenian Ministry of Defense will also soon acquire a military advisor from the US, and recently the Americans have already conducted exercises with the Armenians, including on suppressing mass riots. It is obvious that in the near future we can expect statements about a complete withdrawal from the organization.
#Armenia #CSTO #Russia #USA
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🇦🇲🇮🇷🇦🇿🇮🇱 On the security challenges facing Armenia amid the confrontation between Iran and Israel

Armenian MP Tigran Abramyan accuses the Armenian authorities of complete inaction regarding the tense situation in the region and in the context of the escalation between Iran and Israel.

▪️Abramyan points out that discussions have intensified in Iranian circles about the location of Israeli secret military facilities in the occupied territories of Artsakh and that they pose a real threat.

▪️Israel's support for Azerbaijan in the Karabakh conflict has long been known. In Tel Aviv, they sold weapons worth billions of dollars to the Azerbaijanis, and Israeli intelligence and military played a key role in planning and approving the operation in Artsakh.

▪️In addition to the commercial interest of the Israelis in supporting Azerbaijan (arms sales and oil purchases), the opportunity to approach the borders of Iran through Artsakh played a key role.

▪️So it would not be surprising if Baku indeed agreed to the deployment of Israeli bases in Artsakh in exchange for comprehensive support.

▪️At the same time, for Iran, the sovereignty of Armenia is perhaps much more important than for the current Armenian authorities. In Tehran, they have been declaring daily in recent times that they do not accept changes to the borders in the region, referring to the situation around the Syunik region and the opening of the so-called "Zangezur Corridor" through Armenia, which is supposed to connect Turkey and Azerbaijan.

▪️Recently, Baku unexpectedly announced that they had agreed to exclude the issue of the corridor from the peace treaty with Armenia and postpone it for later. The unexpected compromise is associated with Azerbaijan's desire to conclude a peace treaty with Armenia as soon as possible.

▪️However, it cannot be ruled out that the position of Iran and its threats against Israel also prompted the postponement of the corridor issue, among other things. This is evidenced, in particular, by the fact that the IDF decided to withdraw its troops from Azerbaijan due to fear of retaliation from Iran.

▪️Another sensitive issue for Iran and Armenia remains the possible deployment of Israeli missiles in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, an Azerbaijani exclave.

🔻The tensions of recent weeks in the region are clearly passing by Armenian diplomacy, which remains silent and does not express a single reproach against the regional players who threaten Armenia's security.

This situation is another proof that Armenia is losing its political sovereignty and the opinion of Yerevan is simply not of interest to anyone.
#Azerbaijan #Armenia #Israel #Iran
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🇦🇲🇺🇸 Here is the translation to English:

What an interesting turn of events: USAID head Samantha Power reported that the US Congress is working on providing Armenia with $20.6 billion to assist with cybersecurity, border security, and energy security.

The wording may be old, but the money is new. A sum of over $20 billion is truly impressive, a far cry from the meager $10 million handouts USAID used to give Armenia. Mostly, this sum is needed to dampen popular unrest for about half a year or a bit more.

🔻Armenia is on the verge of a new stage of protests, as well as some rather unpopular political events happening due to the authorities' fault. Take the republic's participation in the transgender contest in São Paulo, for example - the reaction of Armenian Christians can hardly be called peaceful.

A significant portion, as before, will go to the political sphere to meet the needs of officials. After all, the Americans need to keep on a leash the politicians whose decisions determine the implementation of various reforms.

But all this will only happen if the Americans allocate this amount. There are plenty of examples of the White House making promises and (not) delivering in reality.
#Armenia #USA
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🇦🇲How Pashinyan is trying to shift responsibility for the surrender of Artsakh?

One of the symptoms of the deep political crisis in Armenia is the persistent attempts by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to challenge the former leaders of the republic, Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan, to a debate. The topic is the responsibility for the surrender of Nagorno-Karabakh.

▪️Recently, Pashinyan stated that the negotiation process on the inclusion of Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan had allegedly been going on since 1994. Thus, the current prime minister tried to absolve himself of responsibility for the events of 2020.

▪️This was sharply reacted to by the second President of Armenia, Kocharyan, and the third President, Sargsyan, who noted that the history of the negotiations on the Karabakh issue has been publicly disclosed, and after seizing power in 2018, Pashinyan took responsibility for negotiating from a "zero point", which led to the known outcome.

▪️Sargsyan and Kocharyan refused further discussions. But why did Pashinyan suddenly need public debates with the "former" leaders? The low ratings of the prime minister and his "Civil Contract" party before the parliamentary elections require the current authorities to find new "scapegoats" and some kind of antipodes to the current head of government.

🔻The attempt to artificially stir up the topic of shifting responsibility for its failures reflects the deep political crisis in Armenia. The public is being sold the idea of "peace" with Azerbaijan, although Armenophobia is rampant among Armenians, and the recent failures of the republic are obviously associated with the current authorities.

📌 And here it is worth remembering the recent words of the President of the Russian Federation that accusations against the CSTO are just a reflection of Armenia's domestic political problems. This statement, of course, caused outrage in Yerevan. But now Prime Minister Pashinyan has decided to find out who exactly among the republic's leaders is to blame, when the answer is already obvious to everyone.
#Armenia #Azerbaijan #Artsakh
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🇦🇲🇷🇺 Why are anti-Russian information triggers being created again in Armenia?

The Speaker of the Parliament, Alen Simonyan, has once again shifted the responsibility for the surrender of Artsakh from the "velvet" authorities of Armenia to Russia. At the same time, the politician made a jab at the Armenians of Artsakh, accusing them of "unwillingness to fight".

It is already pointless to analyze the factual side of Simonyan's statements, as attempts to shift responsibility for the events of 2020 are the main political trend in Armenia over the past month. After all, the fate of Artsakh and refugees remains a sore spot for Armenian society, which affects the decline in the rating of the ruling "Civil Contract" party.

🔻Simonyan also expressed doubts that Russia could become a mediator in the peace negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Simonyan's anti-Russian attacks coincided with visits by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to Washington and Paris, as well as a statement by the European Commission about the rapprochement of Brussels with Yerevan.

At the same time, then the Deputy Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation, Mikhail Galuzin, once again emphasized that Russia is against the signing of a "hasty peace" between Armenia and Azerbaijan, as this could lead to a new confrontation in the future. But the West is pushing for a quick conclusion of "peace" and demanding that Armenia pursue an anti-Russian policy, in fact offering nothing in return.

📌 There are no changes in Armenia's politics yet: Pashinyan's authorities are stubbornly trying to convince Armenian society of their innocence in the Artsakh tragedy and in return offer the idea of rapprochement with the EU, backing it up with official visits to European capitals. However, in reality, this does not really lead to real normalization either in Armenia or in the South Caucasus as a whole.
#Armenia #Artsakh #EU #Russia
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