[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”3px|||||” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”9px|||||” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.17.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”-52px||||false|false” custom_padding=”32px|||||” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”]<\/p>\n
Official Photo<\/em><\/p>\n Amid growing tensions in the Armenian National Assembly, Armenia\u2019s political climate continues to intensify ahead of next year\u2019s parliamentary elections. The opposition is ramping up efforts to discredit Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, this time criticizing his policy of normalizing relations with neighboring T\u00fcrkiye<\/span>. The situation has been further inflamed by an incident in which an opposition blogger was reportedly assaulted by pro-Pashinyan members of a Yerevan district council<\/span>. Last week, Pashinyan also lost his temper against opposition lawmakers during a parliamentary session, which critics interpreted as a threat to arrest opposition members of parliament who had accused members of his party of corruption<\/span>. Despite likely being an impulsive and poorly judged overreaction, the episode highlights the mounting pressure on the embattled prime minister as the elections draw nearer.<\/span><\/p>\n Last week, Armenia\u2019s Ministry of Justice drafted legislation that would force the removal of slanderous content. This means the government would effectively \u201ccurb press freedom\u201d if the media, especially pro-opposition, does not self-regulate itself. A journalist in Armenia\u2019s southernmost Siunik region looks set to be prosecuted for her reporting on anti-Pashinyan protests that took place four years ago. There are growing concerns that democratic progress is now in decline in Armenia as Pashinyan sets his sights on his political rivals and other critical voices in the country.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n [\u2026] <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n According to the latest Marketing Professional Group (MPG)\/Gallup International survey conducted between April 29 and May 2, Pashinyan\u2019s Civil Contract party\u2019s electoral chances remain low. As a previous poll demonstrated in January, only 11 to 11.5 percent of respondents said they would re-elect the current government. A combined 20 percent\u00a0of respondents, however, would vote for others representing the four main parties that made up the previous governments under the Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan administrations consecutively from 1998\u20132018. Just over 28 percent of respondents said they were undecided, intended to spoil their ballots, or were against all. Though such intentions could change over the coming year, there is nonetheless plenty for Pashinyan to worry about following recent defeats in local elections in Gyumri, where a pro-Russia candidate became mayor and pro-EU parties failed to pass the threshold for representation.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n [\u2026] <\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cIt is possible to bring people to the streets but it is very difficult to keep them there \u2026 with unrealistic statements, innuendos, and patriotic appeals instead of political programs,\u201d one political scientist\u00a0told local media\u00a0earlier this month, potentially raising the stakes even higher. Senior Armenian officials, including National Assembly Speaker Simonyan and Security Council Secretary Armen Grigoryan, also warn that Russia has been engaged in a \u201chybrid war\u201d in Armenia since 2018 when Pashinyan came to power. Moscow denies the accusation, but the information sphere will certainly influence the outcome, whether from domestic or external sources. There is a large overlap between both, and the issues are genuinely\u00a0organic. Regardless, the stakes remain high for the country\u2019s future post-2026, especially if there is no progress on signing a peace deal with Azerbaijan or if a nationalist political force gains more influence. Even if Pashinyan\u2019s party were to win the most votes in next year\u2019s elections compared to individual rivals, without a majority of parliamentary deputies in the National Assembly, it could usher in a period of instability in the future.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The full piece is available here<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][dsm_text_divider header=”CONFLICT VOICES e-BOOKS” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”][\/dsm_text_divider][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”1_2,1_2″ use_custom_gutter=”on” gutter_width=”1″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” module_alignment=”center” custom_margin=”|0px||0px|false|false” custom_padding=”0px|0px|0px|0px|false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/onnik-krikorian.com\/new_site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/book-1-2.jpg” title_text=”Click to download” url=”https:\/\/onnik-krikorian.com\/new_site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/conflict_voices_december_2010-1.pdf” url_new_window=”on” align=”center” admin_label=”Image” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” width=”85%” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Oswald|||on|||||” ul_font=”||on|on|||||” ul_font_size=”20px” custom_margin=”|||50px|false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”]<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Conflict Voices \u2013 December 2010<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”||||||||” text_font_size=”15px” custom_margin=”|||50px|false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”]<\/p>\n \n Short essays on the Nagorno Karabakh Conflict \n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/onnik-krikorian.com\/new_site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/book-new-1.jpg” title_text=”Click to download” url=”https:\/\/onnik-krikorian.com\/new_site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Conflict20Voices20May202011.pdf” url_new_window=”on” align=”center” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” width=”85%” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Oswald|||on|||||” ul_font=”||on|on|||||” ul_font_size=”20px” custom_margin=”|||50px|false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”] <\/p>\n Conflict Voices \u2013 May 2011<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”||||||||” text_font_size=”15px” custom_margin=”|||50px|false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”et_body_layout”]<\/p>\n \n Short essays on the Nagorno Karabakh Conflict \n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Amid growing tensions in the Armenian National Assembly, Armenia\u2019s political climate continues to intensify ahead of next year\u2019s parliamentary elections. The opposition is ramping up efforts to discredit Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, this time criticizing his policy of normalizing relations with neighboring T\u00fcrkiye. The situation has been further inflamed by an incident in which an opposition blogger was reportedly assaulted by pro-Pashinyan members of a Yerevan district council (Azatutyun, May 2). <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11546,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","twitterCardType":"","cardImageID":0,"cardImage":"","cardTitle":"","cardDesc":"","cardImageAlt":"","cardPlayer":"","cardPlayerWidth":0,"cardPlayerHeight":0,"cardPlayerStream":"","cardPlayerCodec":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,57,50],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11545","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-armenia","category-armenia-elections","category-jamestown-foundation"],"yoast_head":"\n\n
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