JAMnews. Top stories in local media.
Thursday, October 2, Armenia. The European Court of Human Rights has ordered Baku to report by November 4 on the conditions and health of 23 Armenian prisoners
● Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has left for Denmark on a working visit. Today in Copenhagen, he will take part in the 7th European Political Community Summit. Bilateral meetings with international partners are also planned.
● Nikol Pashinyan ruled out the possibility of failure of the agreements reached in Washington on August 8 during the meeting of the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan with the participation of President Donald Trump. Speaking in parliament, Pashinyan said: “I have stated, including in international structures, that this agenda cannot fail. Peace is a reality, and peace will increasingly become institutionalized.” During the Washington meeting, Armenia and Azerbaijan also initialed a peace agreement between the two countries.
● Nikol Pashinyan: “When in 2022 we realized that the CSTO (the Russia-led military alliance) had not fulfilled, does not fulfill, and will not fulfill its obligations toward us — that was the moment we became independent. We understood that we must rely on ourselves.”
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● Opposition MP Taguhi Tovmasyan has filed a lawsuit against a colleague from the ruling faction. She is demanding $23,000 in compensation from Artur Hovhannisyan for defamation and insults. Hovhannisyan had alleged that Tovmasyan purchased four apartments on central Northern Avenue in Yerevan during her time as a journalist. When Tovmasyan suggested that Hovhannisyan be tested “for drug use,” he retorted that she should “take daily tests for venereal diseases.”
● The European Court of Human Rights has required Baku to submit by November 4 a report on the detention conditions and health of 23 Armenian prisoners held in Azerbaijan, Armlur reports. In July, Azerbaijan petitioned the Court to be relieved of this obligation, but the request was rejected after Armenia’s objections.
● Armenia will introduce mandatory health insurance starting next year. Minister of Health Anahit Avanesyan stated that the process will begin in 2026 and be completed by 2028. The first stage will cover 1.6 million citizens.
● The airline Wizz Air is now officially based in Armenia. Wizz Air Hungary CEO Roland Tischner announced at a briefing that two aircraft will be stationed at Yerevan’s Zvartnots Airport. He also said Wizz Air will discontinue the Yerevan–Vienna flight due to the closure of its Vienna base following increased airport taxes and fees.
● Vardan Ghukasyan, mayor of Armenia’s second-largest city Gyumri, announced he is preparing to file a lawsuit against the government in the coming days. “Since independence, no mayor has ever sued the government. They take 58 billion drams from Gyumri into the state budget, they should return 27 billion — but give back only 4 billion,” Ghukasyan explained as the reason for his planned lawsuit. Earlier, he stated that he supports Armenia joining the Union State of Russia and Belarus.
Video: Pavilions of the well-known Gnunii construction market in Yerevan have been demolished.
Thursday, October 2, Azerbaijan. The Asian Development Bank is discussing large-scale investments in agriculture in Azerbaijan
● President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Denmark at the invitation of Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and President of the Council of the European Union António Costa. He will take part in the 7th European Political Community Summit.
● The European Court of Human Rights has ordered Azerbaijan to provide information by November 4 on the conditions of detention and health status of 23 Armenian prisoners. This was reported to the Armenian Service of Radio Liberty by Siranush Sahakyan, who represents the rights of the Armenian prisoners before the Court. According to her, in July Azerbaijan asked the Court to release it from the obligation to provide such information. The Armenian government and the prisoners’ representatives opposed the request, and the Court rejected Azerbaijan’s petition. Azatutyun reports that the Armenian prisoners have been held in complete isolation in Baku prisons for about three months. It is claimed that no independent international organization has visited them and there is no information about their conditions of detention, health, or psychological state. In June, representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross visited the Armenian prisoners. However, the organization suspended its activities in Baku as of October 1.
It has been officially confirmed that 23 Armenian prisoners are currently held in Azerbaijan, including 16 former representatives of the separatist regime in Karabakh. Their trial is now underway in Baku. So far, the Azerbaijani authorities have not commented on the ECHR’s order to provide a report on these prisoners.
● The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is discussing cooperation in agriculture with the government of Azerbaijan. It was noted that in the bank’s long-term Strategy 2030, agriculture is highlighted as one of seven operational priorities. A $40 billion investment program for transforming food systems has been announced, which includes Azerbaijan. “About 36% of the country’s population is employed in agriculture, but the sector remains heavily underinvested: only about 1 in 10 hectares of irrigated land has proper irrigation systems,” the ADB stated. Projects under consideration include river basin assessments, water resource monitoring and forecasting, support for irrigation systems and the introduction of new technologies, as well as training farmers in climate-resilient crops and management practices.
● The Baku Climate Action Week 2025 (BCAW2025) – an international forum of experts proposing effective climate solutions – continues its work. The conference is held in partnership with the London Climate Action Week BCAW2025.
● Railway operators of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Georgia agreed to establish a unified long-term tariff across the entire Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, also known as the Middle Corridor. The parties also agreed to jointly coordinate actions to develop port, railway, and logistics infrastructure, eliminate bottlenecks, and digitalize procedures. The goal of the plan is to increase the efficiency and seamlessness of transport along the route, which is becoming a key Eurasian corridor between China, Central Asia, and Europe.
● A public meeting dedicated to Ukraine’s Defenders Day was held in Baku, organized by the Ukrainian Embassy. Deputy Chairman of the Milli Majlis Rafael Huseynov spoke at the event, saying: “This holiday symbolizes respect and tribute to the courage of people who selflessly fight for the freedom and independence of their homeland. The relations of friendship and cooperation between Azerbaijan and Ukraine have deep historical roots. Our countries have closely cooperated in all areas and have always supported each other within international organizations, including on issues of territorial integrity. Meetings between the presidents of Azerbaijan and Ukraine, Ilham Aliyev and Volodymyr Zelensky, as well as the signed documents and joint statements, have laid a solid foundation for relations between our countries.”
● The Central Bank has stopped publishing the official exchange rate of the Iranian rial against the manat. It was announced that it has become impossible to obtain data from traditional information sources, while alternative sources are unreliable. Most foreign central banks have already stopped publishing the official rate of the rial for the same reasons.
● Former head of the Ministry of Defense’s financial service Namig Mirzayev was sentenced to 11 years and 6 months in prison on charges of embezzling a particularly large sum in 2023–2024. Earlier, Mirzayev testified in court as a witness in the case against Major General Nizami Mammadov and others arrested for embezzlement in the defense sector.
● The Qarabağ football team defeated Denmark’s Copenhagen 2:0 in the 2nd round match of the UEFA Champions League group stage. After the victory, Qarabağ rose to 4th place in the standings, ahead of Atlético Madrid, as well as England’s Liverpool and Chelsea.
Thursday, October 2, Georgia. Opposition figure Gela Khasaia remains in custody, and opposition Tbilisi City Council member Zviad Kuprava has been detained
● The court has kept opposition Coalition for Change member Gela Khasaia (pictured) in pre-trial detention. The prosecutor said there are three formal grounds for this measure: repeat offense, witness intimidation, and risk of flight. Khasaia was arrested on September 29 along with citizen Vasil Kerdikoshvili. They are charged with intentional infliction of less serious bodily harm committed by a group, carrying a penalty of 4–6 years in prison. It is alleged that they deliberately injured a victim in central Tbilisi, on Queen Tamar Avenue. At Wednesday’s hearing, Kerdikoshvili pleaded guilty, but Khasaia’s lawyers claim the politician does not even know him.
● Opposition leaders jailed in Georgia have appealed to UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper to impose sanctions on the Georgian Dream government and its allies over the “unprecedented expansion” of Iran’s influence. The Guardian reports that the letter was signed by seven politicians.
● A US Congress bill titled “On Non-Recognition of the Georgian Nightmare” (a play on the ruling party Georgian Dream’s name) has gained another co-sponsor. Currently, nine lawmakers back it: Republican Joe Wilson, Democrat Steve Cohen, Republican Michael Turner, Democrat Lloyd Doggett, Republican Michael Lawler, Democrat Emanuel Cleaver, Democrat Jimmy Panetta, Democrat Thomas Suozzi, and most recently Eugene Vindman.
● Tbilisi City Hall published a letter from famous opera singer Paata Burchuladze, an active participant in ongoing pro-European protests lasting more than 10 months. He demanded that stages be set up in four locations on Rustaveli Avenue and Freedom Square for public gatherings on municipal election day, October 4. City Hall responded that organizers may set up a stage only in one location and in a way that does not obstruct traffic or business activity.
● Frederick Starr, founder and chairman of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute, spoke about the direct link between Putin and Bidzina Ivanishvili (an oligarch considered the real ruler of Georgia). “Vladimir Putin is not eternal; he’s finished. He lacks human resources and the exports he once had. He presides over a society deeply alienated not because of the war, but due to the economic hardships faced by those outside Russia’s two biggest cities. He will be gone sooner than we think, and once he is, Bidzina Ivanishvili will go too. I think we should focus on what is happening in Russia,” Starr said at a US Senate subcommittee hearing on European and regional security cooperation.
● State Security Services reported the arrest of Tbilisi City Council member from the opposition United National Movement, Zviad Kuprava, on charges of calling for the overthrow of the government.
● Georgian Dream parliamentary speaker Shalva Papuashvili again lashed out at the European Union. “Georgian society long ago took off the rose-colored glasses through which it looked at the world, including Europe. Everyone has seen that Europe, the European Union, is not a gathering of saints acting for others’ interests. Everyone there pursues their own interests in a very dry, pragmatic, and calculated way,” Papuashvili said.
● Georgian Dream’s Foreign Minister Maka Bochorishvili said she supported a French-led initiative within the European Political Community to combat drug trafficking. “This is a very important issue for Georgia, and especially recently much work has been done on this problem,” Bochorishvili stated.
● Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze is attending the European Political Community summit in Denmark.
● State Security Service head Mamuka Mdinaradze commented on the case of 2.4 kg of RDX explosives discovered in a car with two Ukrainian citizens. “The investigation is considering the version that the explosives could have been brought from Ukraine for transit to Russia—this was confirmed by the driver. The second version, more likely, is that the explosives were meant to stay in Georgia. In both cases, the scale of the threat was very high, and we were able to prevent serious danger,” Mdinaradze said. He linked the incident to the upcoming October 4 municipal elections. “We cannot say this is a coincidence. Before every election in Georgia, similar special operations take place. The aim is often to create chaos and destabilize the country,” he said, recalling the car bombing of politician Givi Targamadze four days before the 2016 parliamentary elections.
● Since spring 2024, more than 230 representatives of the ruling Georgian Dream have come under Western sanctions, Transparency International Georgia reports. Most of the measures are visa restrictions. The list includes Georgian Dream founder, oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili, and four members of his family, as well as 52 senior officials, 47 judges, 17 prosecutors, and 14 police officers.
