An Armenian honorary consul in Russia has reportedly been dismissed after publicly condemning Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s escalating campaign against the Armenian Apostolic Church, which has already led to the politically charged arrest of billionaire Samvel Karapetyan.
Narek Spartakyan, who had served as Armenia’s honorary consul in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg since 2018, was reportedly sacked after denouncing the government’s unprecedented assault on one of the nation’s oldest and most sacred institutions. Armenia’s Foreign Ministry refused to deny the reports published by the Russian outlet Ura.ru.
“I consider any actions against the Armenian Apostolic Church, an important foundation of the spiritual unity of all Armenians, unacceptable,” Spartakyan said Monday, openly criticizing Pashinyan’s campaign to pressure Catholicos Garegin II and other senior clerics.
Karapetyan, a philanthropist and one of the most influential Armenian businessmen abroad, was arrested on June 18—just hours after publicly opposing Pashinyan’s attempts to depose the Catholicos. The billionaire now faces dubious criminal charges, including “calls for violent overthrow of the government,” which he firmly rejects as politically motivated and part of a broader crackdown on dissent.
Civil Contract party spokesman Vahagn Aleksanyan effectively confirmed Spartakyan’s dismissal, declaring that honorary consuls “have no right to speak against the policies of Armenia’s elected authorities,” a statement critics say lays bare the regime’s intolerance for free speech even beyond its borders.
For months, Pashinyan has been waging an unprecedented campaign to undermine the Armenian Church, attempting to strip the Catholicos of his position under the guise of moral accusations, while many believe his real aim is to neutralize one of the few remaining centers of resistance to his policies. Opponents accuse him of seeking to weaken the Church to appease Azerbaijan and smooth the path for further one-sided concessions.
On July 20, Pashinyan called on his supporters to “liberate” the Echmiadzin seat of the Catholicos in Vagharshapat and prepare for a rally in the town square adjacent to the Mother See. Critics immediately denounced the move as a direct threat of state-orchestrated violence against the Church. Garegin II’s office warned on July 21 that the prime minister is preparing a violent assault on the Mother See, while opposition groups vowed to defend Armenia’s spiritual center if attacked.
Pashinyan has not announced a date for the rally, but his allies maintain that he has not abandoned his plan to “take over” Echmiadzin. His increasingly hostile rhetoric against the Church, combined with politically motivated arrests and the silencing of critics abroad, has fueled accusations that his government is trampling on Armenia’s spiritual and democratic foundations in its pursuit of unchecked power.
An Armenian honorary consul in Russia has reportedly been dismissed after publicly condemning Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s escalating campaign against the Armenian Apostolic Church, which has already led to the politically charged arrest of billionaire Samvel Karapetyan.
Narek Spartakyan, who had served as Armenia’s honorary consul in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg since 2018, was reportedly sacked after denouncing the government’s unprecedented assault on one of the nation’s oldest and most sacred institutions. Armenia’s Foreign Ministry refused to deny the reports published by the Russian outlet Ura.ru.
“I consider any actions against the Armenian Apostolic Church, an important foundation of the spiritual unity of all Armenians, unacceptable,” Spartakyan said Monday, openly criticizing Pashinyan’s campaign to pressure Catholicos Garegin II and other senior clerics.
Karapetyan, a philanthropist and one of the most influential Armenian businessmen abroad, was arrested on June 18—just hours after publicly opposing Pashinyan’s attempts to depose the Catholicos. The billionaire now faces dubious criminal charges, including “calls for violent overthrow of the government,” which he firmly rejects as politically motivated and part of a broader crackdown on dissent.
Civil Contract party spokesman Vahagn Aleksanyan effectively confirmed Spartakyan’s dismissal, declaring that honorary consuls “have no right to speak against the policies of Armenia’s elected authorities,” a statement critics say lays bare the regime’s intolerance for free speech even beyond its borders.
For months, Pashinyan has been waging an unprecedented campaign to undermine the Armenian Church, attempting to strip the Catholicos of his position under the guise of moral accusations, while many believe his real aim is to neutralize one of the few remaining centers of resistance to his policies. Opponents accuse him of seeking to weaken the Church to appease Azerbaijan and smooth the path for further one-sided concessions.
On July 20, Pashinyan called on his supporters to “liberate” the Echmiadzin seat of the Catholicos in Vagharshapat and prepare for a rally in the town square adjacent to the Mother See. Critics immediately denounced the move as a direct threat of state-orchestrated violence against the Church. Garegin II’s office warned on July 21 that the prime minister is preparing a violent assault on the Mother See, while opposition groups vowed to defend Armenia’s spiritual center if attacked.
Pashinyan has not announced a date for the rally, but his allies maintain that he has not abandoned his plan to “take over” Echmiadzin. His increasingly hostile rhetoric against the Church, combined with politically motivated arrests and the silencing of critics abroad, has fueled accusations that his government is trampling on Armenia’s spiritual and democratic foundations in its pursuit of unchecked power.
