Changes

==Government and Political Conditions==

==Government and Political Conditions==

Nikol Pashinyan came to power in a [[Western alliance|Western-supported]] movement that ousted the previous pro-Russian government, widely seen as corrupt, creating the centerpiece of a narrative that Armenia's financial problems would be solved by eliminating the incumbents. Pashinyan's movement was not openly anti-Russian, considering Armenia's strong economic ties with Russia. However, it did not take long for Pashinyan and his appointees to consolidate power across the board. Pashinyan presided over the engineered defeat of [[Nagorno-Karabakh]], conceding to [[Azerbaijan]]'s conquest of that land. Pashinyan was immediately re-elected in the aftermath of the post-war chaos.  

Nikol Pashinyan came to power in a [[Western alliance|Western-supported]] movement that ousted the previous pro-Russian government, widely seen as corrupt, creating the centerpiece of a narrative that Armenia's financial problems would be solved by eliminating the incumbents. Pashinyan's movement was not openly anti-Russian, considering Armenia's strong economic ties with Russia. However, it did not take long for Pashinyan and his appointees to consolidate power across the board. Pashinyan enjoys a complete [[media]] [[monopoly]] over information flow, and opposition [[journalist]]s have been threatened and for the most are scared to report on government activities that might show Pashinyan in a bad light. The government promotes a narrative that is very [[anti-Russian]], anti-[[church]], and people are likely will be arrested for speaking out against the preferred narrative. Many are in [[jail]] for [[social media]] posts.<ref>https://cdm.press/news/asia/2025/07/27/armenia-is-a-hidden-police-state-threatening-the-armenian-apostolic-orthodox-church/</ref>

 

Pashinyan presided over the engineered defeat of [[Nagorno-Karabakh]], conceding to [[Azerbaijan]]'s conquest of that land. Pashinyan was immediately re-elected in the aftermath of the post-war chaos.  

In 2023, Azerbaijan ethnically cleansed 120,000 Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh. Pashinyan referred to Nagorno-Karabakh as a significant burden on Armenia. Any leverage that Russia had over both Armenia and Azerbaijan with the frozen Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was removed. Azerbaijan's border with [[Iran]] expanded by over 200 km and became ripe for clandestine operations against Iran, particularly by [[Israel]].

In 2023, Azerbaijan ethnically cleansed 120,000 Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh. Pashinyan referred to Nagorno-Karabakh as a significant burden on Armenia. Any leverage that Russia had over both Armenia and Azerbaijan with the frozen Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was removed. Azerbaijan's border with [[Iran]] expanded by over 200 km and became ripe for clandestine operations against Iran, particularly by [[Israel]].