From books and films, we know that when someone is to be drawn into criminal activity—say, a gang or the mafia—they are first assigned some dirty job, so that there is no way back, no possibility of returning to a normal life. From that point on, they are bound to the criminal group forever. This is a universal law that operates in many different spheres of life.
Some of the rebellious bishops may well have considered taking a step back and continuing their ministry in peace. But Pashinyan forced them to sign yet another document—illegal from every conceivable point of view—so that they would be fully sullied and would never dare to “jump ship” or turn against the boss.
Now the authorities, through one of their proxy bishops, have filed a lawsuit against the Armenian Apostolic Church—a claim that quite clearly falls outside the court’s jurisdiction. Of course, they could have continued to keep that bishop confined in the diocesan residence by force, through the National Security Service. But that is not the point here. It is obvious that a Pashinyan-controlled court will rule in favor of a Pashinyan-aligned bishop. In doing so, the judicial system will be further smeared—so much so that it will soon be almost impossible to clean.
The same logic applies, of course, on the international stage. The Armenian authorities, naturally, would like to maneuver between Turkey, Iran, Russia, the EU, and the United States. But Turkey’s foreign minister, preempting any such maneuver and bluntly commenting on Armenia’s internal affairs, made it clear that, in his view, the upcoming parliamentary elections in our country favor Pashinyan. Speaking about the elections and offering a positive assessment of a specific candidate cannot be interpreted any other way in the realm of international relations. Although Fidan did not specify how this support might manifest—morally, politically, financially, or militarily—it is reasonable to interpret that, from now on, Pashinyan can be seen as Turkey’s preferred candidate. (Against this backdrop, talk of this or that figure serving foreign interests or acting as a foreign agent seems absurd.)
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The calculation is simple. Knowing Armenia’s rulers, the Turkish leadership understands perfectly well that they will not have the dignity to say, “Dear Mr. Fidan, elections in Armenia are our internal affair, not yours.” Instead, they will be forced to respond to this slap at Armenia’s sovereignty with expressions of gratitude.
In other words, once again, to become further compromised—and more tightly bound.
Aram ABRAHAMYAN
