Politics

Armenia’s political landscape has been shaken by leaked recordings, questionable surveillance, and criminal cases built on audio, sometimes of unknown origin. Hranoush Dermoyan examines the murky intersection of privacy, power and politics, revealing how wiretapping has become a tool of influence and pressure.

Armenia has lagged in global cybersecurity rankings, but new institutions, a comprehensive Cybersecurity Law, and alignment with EU standards signal a turning point. Albert Nerzetyan examines the country’s emerging governance framework, its structural advantages, and the challenges ahead in implementation.

What are the legal and ethical boundaries between privacy and public interest in democratic societies? Using the recent leaked video involving a senior Armenian cleric as context, Anoush Begoyan outlines established principles that distinguish legitimate scrutiny from voyeurism and scandal.

France’s defense cooperation with Armenia marks a decisive shift in its policy toward the EU’s eastern periphery. Moving from symbolism to substance, Paris now helps Yerevan build deterrence and resilience, reshaping how sovereignty and stability interact in the South Caucasus. Sossi Tatikyan explains.

Armenia’s pursuit of a strategic partnership with China and its bid to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) reflect a broader effort to recalibrate foreign policy amid shifting global alignments, balancing ambition with constraint in an increasingly multipolar world.

Five years after the 2020 war, Aliyev and Pashinyan addressed the UNGA with sharply contrasting narratives. Aliyev employed cognitive warfare to assert dominance and legitimize past aggression, while Pashinyan exercised narrative constraint, emphasizing sovereignty, reciprocity and constructive peacebuilding. Sossi Tatikyan explains.

As global power shifts toward multipolarity, Armenia faces profound uncertainty. With Russia’s retreat and ongoing regional pressures, Yerevan is pursuing a “balanced and balancing” foreign policy—deepening Western ties while engaging Iran, India, China and others—in a bold recalibration of its security and diplomacy.

Over 150,000 Armenians from Artsakh were forcibly displaced through war, blockade and systemic persecution. Examined through international law, these events constitute forcible transfer, violating fundamental rights and undermining the principle of return.

Church–state relations in Armenia have resurfaced as a pressing issue amid unprecedented tensions between the prime minister and the Catholicos. This primer traces three decades of relations under four administrations, exploring how legal frameworks and leadership dynamics shaped patterns of cooperation and tension.

Armenia and Azerbaijan have initialed, but not signed, a peace agreement. While the deal advances hopes for normalization, the ambiguities and omissions leave a potential settlement fragile, contested and vulnerable to instability. Sossi Tatikyan explains.