“ACNIS ReView from Yerevan” . In the previous issue, the editorial section of Hayatsk Yerevanits, the ACNIS review, delved into the Church-Pashinyan conflict. It concluded that the individual currently occupying the prime minister’s chair in the Republic of Armenia appears determined to achieve two key objectives: (a) comply with Azerbaijan’s immediate demand to halt the public activities of the Catholicos of All Armenians, and (b) bring the Armenian Apostolic Church, the nation’s last bastion of resistance, under his control in the lead-up to the 2026 parliamentary elections. With new details and developments emerging over the past week, it is imperative to revisit this critical issue.
Let us recall how Pashinyan initiated his campaign against the Armenian Apostolic Church. During a regular government session on May 29, Pashinyan described Armenian churches as “desecrated,” citing his visits to several historical and cultural monuments currently undergoing repair or reconstruction. He criticized their sanitary conditions, referring to them as “closets” filled with construction waste and effectively branding these sacred spaces as junk rooms. However, it soon became evident that concerns over sanitary conditions were merely a pretext. His true objective was to intensify his anti-church campaign, openly calling for the “liberation” of the Mother See from Catholicos Garegin II and the election of what he referred to as “one of the truly holy clergy” as the new Catholicos. This marked a direct appeal to the faithful followers of the Armenian Apostolic Church. Furthermore, Pashinyan condemned the Church and issued threats to impose new taxes on its operations.
Those familiar with Pashinyan assert that he has mastered the art of collecting compromising materials and using them to blackmail opponents. He developed this “skill” during his years as a journalist and later refined it as an editor. In his current role, leveraging such materials remains his “heavy artillery,” allowing him to wield significant influence over people and situations. With access to extensive resources, Pashinyan can orchestrate slander campaigns, launch investigations, order arrests, impose penalties, and disqualify opponents from elections, among other measures. His arsenal of repressive tools is vast, but compromising materials remain his most potent and frequently deployed weapon.
Consider, for example, the infamous “tushonka” (canned beef stew) operation staged against the late General Manvel Grigoryan, or the tragic case of producer Armen Grigoryan, who faced a fabricated trial that ended with his death in the defendant’s chair. It has become widely acknowledged that the notorious duo possesses compromising materials on nearly everyone. They exercise this information strategically, branding one individual as a thief, another as a foreign agent for Russia or Turkey, and yet another as a bribe-taker or pedophile, depending on the situation. According to Hraparak daily, Pashinyan is resolute in his intent to remove the Catholicos. Members of the Civil Contract Party reportedly assert that he “will not back down” until Garegin II voluntarily resigns. The publication further claims, “Nikol has decided to continue targeting the servants of the Church on a daily basis.”
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Pashinyan, who has openly declared war on the Armenian Apostolic Church and its clergy, operates from a position of historically low public approval. His campaign to remove the Catholicos relies on a shrinking base of supporters and the deceptive rhetoric of acting “for the people.” His recent Facebook posts, including claims such as “the Church belongs to the people, and we must return it to them,” and his provocative call for a change in Catholicos addressed to the Church’s followers, underscore this strategy. However, it is becoming increasingly clear that society no longer believes the falsehoods or is swayed by the compromising materials wielded by the ruling couple. The real “compromising material” is the devastating state of Armenia and the tragic loss of Artsakh.
For this reason, the prevailing belief among the majority of Armenians, including the faithful followers of the Armenian Apostolic Church, is resolute: it is not the Catholicos who should “vacate the patriarchate,” but Nikol Pashinyan who must vacate the government building.
The Armenian Center for National and International Studies
