JAMnews. Top stories in local media.
Tuesday, August 26, Armenia. Armenian delegation has been invited to China for the 80th anniversary of Japan’s defeat and the end of WWII
● An Armenian delegation has been invited to China for celebrations marking the 80th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II. A military parade will take place in Beijing on September 3, led by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. “This reflects the high level of political dialogue between the two countries,” said Levon Ayvazyan, head of defense policy and international cooperation at Armenia’s Defense Ministry.
● “The main challenge in Armenian-Azerbaijani relations remains the issue of trust. If Armenia and Azerbaijan trusted each other, there would be no need to sign any documents,” Prime Minister Pashinyan said at the annual meeting of Armenian diplomatic mission heads. Since Sunday, August 24, the meeting has been held in Kapan, Syunik region, on the border with Azerbaijan. Pashinyan stressed that diplomats must create “at least a minimal foundation for building trust.”
● At the same meeting, Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan presented Armenian diplomats with details of the peace agreement initialed with Azerbaijan. He outlined Armenia’s foreign policy vision in the new reality of “established peace,” highlighting emerging opportunities and how to realize them. He emphasized the benefits of unblocking regional communications, an agreement reached in Washington with U.S. mediation.
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● Iran’s presidential press service reported that Masoud Pezeshkian, in a phone call with Vladimir Putin, discussed the results of his visit to Armenia. He said Armenian authorities, in talks with Azerbaijan and the U.S., took into account the interests of Iran and Russia — something Prime Minister Pashinyan had assured him of. Read more here
● Armenia’s economic activity grew by 9.1% in July 2025 compared to the same month last year. According to official statistics, industry grew 4.2%, construction 26.1%, trade 3.8%, and services 11.1%. As a result, budget tax revenues also increased. Read more here
● Ruling Civil Contract party MP Armen Khachatryan reported on the results of the three-year border support program. The initiative allows people to settle in border villages of their choice, simultaneously solving housing issues and repopulating these areas. After Azerbaijan’s incursions into Armenia in 2021 and 2022, many were reluctant to live near the frontier. “Under the program, each beneficiary receives support worth 16 million drams (about $42,000). Hundreds of houses have already been built in border villages. In the village of Karahunj, Goris community, 51 private houses were constructed in two years, creating an entirely new neighborhood. I call this a program to save villages, because for decades almost no houses were built in rural areas — now whole new districts are emerging,” said the MP. Read more here
● “Starting September 1, displaced persons from Nagorno-Karabakh will be exempt from paying state fees for obtaining Armenian citizenship,” the migration and citizenship service announced.
● From May to July 2025, Armenia recorded its highest-ever tourist arrivals for these months: 181,436 in May, 215,253 in June, and 263,592 in July.
Tuesday, August 26, Azerbaijan. Erdoğan: “Economic cooperation between Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia will reach a new level after the full implementation of the Zangezur Corridor project”
● Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov held talks in Baku with UK Minister of State Stephen Doughty. They discussed the situation in the South Caucasus and the peace process between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Both sides called Azerbaijan a reliable partner in energy security and emphasized its role as an initiator and key executor of major international projects. Special attention was given to cooperation between SOCAR and BP in renewable energy.
● President Ilham Aliyev posted on X thanking U.S. President Donald Trump for supporting peace in the South Caucasus and for a personal gift — a signed photo from their meeting. The photo inscription reads: “Ilham, You are Great Leader.”
● “Economic cooperation between Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia will reach a new level after the full implementation of the Zangezur Corridor project,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said following a cabinet meeting.
This road will link Azerbaijan with its Nakhchivan exclave through Armenia. Under a Washington-brokered deal on August 8 with Trump’s involvement, a 40 km section on Armenian territory will be managed by a joint U.S.-Armenian company. The project, resolving a long-standing Armenia–Azerbaijan dispute, has been named the “Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity” (TRIPP).
● “Azerbaijan is ready to support a diplomatic settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It is important to ensure conditions for humanitarian aid delivery to Gaza,” said Deputy Foreign Minister Yalchin Rafiyev at an emergency OIC ministerial session in Jeddah. He reaffirmed Azerbaijan’s support for a two-state solution, in line with international law and UN Security Council resolutions, and pledged continued aid for Palestinians.
● The trial of former leaders of the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic continued. They are accused of war crimes, terrorism, attempts to overthrow state power, and other serious offenses. According to state agency AZERTAC, victims of Armenian armed attacks and former prisoners who endured torture testified, along with dozens who suffered violence or lost relatives during the first Karabakh war in the early 1990s. The trial will resume on August 28.
● Today Azerbaijan marks Lachin City Day, celebrating its liberation from 30 years of Armenian occupation during the Second Karabakh War. “On August 26, 2022, the Azerbaijani flag was raised in Lachin. Major General Kanan Seyidov reported to President Ilham Aliyev on the army’s deployment there. The president announced the joyful return of Azerbaijanis to Lachin on his X page,” the press release stated.
● Next steps in energy cooperation between Azerbaijan and Syria were discussed at Syria’s Ministry of Energy with the participation of Azerbaijani chargé d’affaires in Damascus, Elnur Shahguseynov.
● A warehouse fire at the Sədərək shopping center has been fully extinguished, the Ministry of Emergency Situations reported. Here is an analysis of the recurring fires in shopping centers
● Twenty-eight graduates of the Gabala State Vocational Education Center received equipment as a gift to help them start work in bakery, tailoring, printing, beauty salons, and auto-electrics. One has already launched a bread and pastry business. The project, Youth Business Workshop, launched in 2021, aims to develop entrepreneurial skills and support youth businesses. So far, 65 people in Baku and the regions have received equipment.
Tuesday, August 26, Georgia. Amnesty International demands a fair investigation into the cases of arrested protesters or their immediate release
● Amnesty International has sent a letter to the Prosecutor General from the Georgian Dream party regarding the arrested actor Andro Chichinadze and other activists detained during pro-European protests. The letter says that the evidence against them is insufficient, while video footage clearly shows police officers insulting protesters. The organization also highlights major violations in court proceedings: Chichinadze was assigned a state lawyer without his consent, the defense was given insufficient time, and witness testimonies against police officers were contradictory. Amnesty reminds Georgian Dream that by labeling prisoners of conscience as criminals, the authorities violate the presumption of innocence. Human rights defenders demand fair trials for the detainees or their immediate release, as well as an effective investigation into all reported police abuses.
● Two opposition parties, Lelo – Strong Georgia and For Georgia, have nominated candidates for the Tbilisi City Council majoritarian elections scheduled for October 4. Mayoral candidate Irakli Kupradze said that if he wins, both parties will introduce European standards of governance in Tbilisi to bring “prosperity and happiness.”
● Eight opposition parties boycotting the local elections have announced a joint march on September 13. They called the October 4 municipal elections a “Russian special operation” and urged other opposition forces to withdraw from participation and “return to unity.”
● Nika Gvaramia, leader of Coalition for Change: “The appointment of Georgian Dream ideologist Mamuka Mdinaradze as head of the State Security Service means the agency will now focus on propaganda efforts benefiting Russia. This absurd flow of disinformation cannot be countered by simple refutation — civil society, opposition, and especially critical media must mobilize to shape the agenda.”
● Georgia has lost an international arbitration case against Russian energy company Inter RAO. The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes rejected Georgia’s appeal and upheld the decision ordering it to pay $76.9 million plus an annual interest rate of 2%. The case, launched by Inter RAO in 2017, concerned changes in electricity tariff methodology introduced in Georgia in 2014, which the company argued caused significant losses.
● Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze said that Georgia has taken concrete steps toward EU integration and implemented the required reforms, but some EU officials “unfairly assess” its progress. Commenting on the European Commission’s negative assessment of Georgia’s compliance with candidate recommendations, Kaladze claimed: “We are ahead of many EU member states, not to mention candidate countries. But some European bureaucrats rely on lies and misinformation. Their double standards have two main reasons: first, Georgia refused to enter the war with Russia and open a second front; second, we did not join the financial sanctions against Russia, which would have been catastrophic for our economy.”
● August 29 has been declared a public holiday in Georgia, though no explanation was provided. Authorities only noted that the decision does not apply to essential services.