YEREVAN, November 8, 2026 — Armenia’s major opposition forces have joined together in a coordinated effort to oppose Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s plans to adopt a new constitution, accusing his government of advancing constitutional changes under pressure from Azerbaijan.
The opposition coalition, which includes more than a dozen political groups, announced its cooperation following an emergency meeting in Yerevan on November 4. The gathering took place shortly after the arrest of businessman and Strong Armenia leader Samvel Karapetian, whose political allies have characterized the charges against him as politically motivated.
Among the participating forces are the Strong Armenia alliance, former President Robert Kocharyan’s Hayastan alliance, Gagik Tsarukyan’s Prosperous Armenia Party, and parties associated with former Presidents Serzh Sargsyan and Levon Ter-Petrosyan.
Despite longstanding political differences, the groups agreed to cooperate on several national priorities, including preventing the adoption of a new constitution, opposing further unilateral concessions to Azerbaijan, defending the Armenian Apostolic Church, and restoring democratic rights and freedoms.
Narek Karapetian, a leading figure in Strong Armenia, emphasized that the participating organizations were putting aside their differences to address what they consider urgent threats to Armenia’s sovereignty and national identity.
The opposition’s central concern is the Pashinyan administration’s intention to remove the reference to Armenia’s 1990 Declaration of Independence from the constitution. The declaration refers to the 1989 decision concerning the unification of Soviet Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, which Azerbaijan maintains constitutes a territorial claim against it.
Opposition leaders have consequently described the proposed new constitution as “Aliyev’s Constitution,” arguing that Armenia’s fundamental law must be determined by the Armenian people rather than influenced by demands from Baku.
Pashinyan has rejected accusations that Azerbaijan is dictating Armenia’s constitutional reforms, maintaining that the constitution is exclusively an internal Armenian matter.
However, speaking at a discussion in Yerevan on November 7, the prime minister acknowledged that Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev had indicated that Baku was unwilling to sign a peace agreement under Armenia’s existing constitutional arrangements.
The admission has intensified the dispute between the government and opposition over the relationship between constitutional reform and negotiations with Azerbaijan.
Following the announcement of their cooperation, opposition representatives launched a public awareness campaign over the November 7–8 weekend, approaching residents in Yerevan’s streets and metro stations to explain their objections to the proposed constitutional changes.
Participants included representatives of parliamentary opposition forces, Narek Karapetian, and Armenian National Congress Deputy Chairman Aram Manukyan.
The campaign is intended to mobilize public opposition to the constitutional initiative and increase pressure on lawmakers to reject the government’s plans.
The constitutional dispute also presents a significant parliamentary obstacle for Pashinyan. His ruling Civil Contract party does not possess the two-thirds majority necessary to approve submitting the proposed constitution to a referendum and would require the support of at least six opposition lawmakers.
Opposition groups have declared that they will not provide that support.
Pashinyan, meanwhile, has suggested that his political team could organize public demonstrations outside parliament to pressure lawmakers who oppose the referendum initiative.
The newly formed opposition coalition has not yet announced a comprehensive schedule of joint demonstrations or other coordinated political actions, although its representatives have indicated that constitutionally permitted methods of opposition remain under consideration.
The confrontation comes amid broader political tensions following Armenia’s June parliamentary elections, the arrests of prominent opposition figures, and continuing disputes involving the government and the Armenian Apostolic Church.
Opposition leaders warn that removing references to the Declaration of Independence would not necessarily satisfy Azerbaijan and could lead to additional demands for concessions.
With the government insisting that constitutional reform is necessary and the opposition increasingly coordinating its resistance, the dispute is emerging as a major test of Armenia’s political institutions and the direction of its relations with Azerbaijan.
