Press Release: Statement Condemning Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan War on the Armenian Apostolic Church
On July 1, 2025, a group of religious freedom organizations based in the United States co-signed the attached Statement regarding Nikol Pashinyan’s malign actions against the Armenian Apostolic Church, which was shared with Congressional leaders, senior members of the US Executive branch, and faith groups.
Specifically, the Statement noted: “We categorically denounce Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s relentless, politically motivated assaults on the sacred Armenian Apostolic Church, its devoted clergy, and, by extension, the faithful Armenian people whose spiritual, moral, and national identity are deeply rooted in their Church.”
The co-signed also noted that the unhinged behavior demonstrated in recent days by PM Pashinyan portrays a dangerous trend which is intended to oppress the voice, actions, and the teachings of the Church and to demoralize the Church and the Armenian faithful.
For that and other reasons mentioned in the letter, they stated that “we stand with the Armenian Apostolic Church and the Armenian people and we vehemently denounce any and all such actions by PM Pashinyan against the Armenian Apostolic Church.”
We thank Sovereign Global Solutions, our lobbyist in Washington, DC, for facilitating the issuance and dissemination of this important Statement at a critical junction for the Armenian Church, the Armenian people, and Armenia’s sovereignty.
Governing Council
National Democratic Alliance
July 2, 2025
Yerevan, Armenia
Statement Condemning Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s War Against the Armenian Apostolic Church
We categorically denounce Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s relentless, politically motivated assaults on the sacred Armenian Apostolic Church, its devoted clergy, and, by extension, the faithful Armenian people whose spiritual, moral, and national identity are deeply rooted in their Church. His disgraceful and incendiary rhetoric is not only an affront to centuries of religious tradition but a calculated attempt to undermine the very foundation of Armenian heritage and unity. We stand in solidarity with the Armenian people and the Armenian Apostolic Church.
On Friday night, May 30, 2025, Pashinyan launched a war of abusive and vulgar statements against the Armenian Apostolic Church on Facebook. In numerous postings, Pashinyan deeply offended the Church and its people, further widening the gap of trust between the Armenian people and his failing leadership.
In a statement issued on June 2, His Holiness Catholicos Garegin II stated:
“The anti-church behavior of the head of government, the processes initiated against national values and the Church are fraught with destructive consequences and a threat to the Armenian statehood, the unity of our people both in the homeland and in the Diaspora. Such actions divide society, weaken the spirit of the nation and the high consciousness of patriotism, especially in the face of current challenges. Such reprehensible initiatives serve the aspirations of external Armenophobic forces, being to some extent connected with the slander and false accusations directed at the Armenian people and the Armenian Church by the Azerbaijani propaganda machine.”
In solidarity with church leaders in Etchmiadzin, the Catholicos of Cicilia, Aram I, made the following verbal statement in disapproval of Pashinyan’s hateful and blasphemous remarks:
“In Armenia, in recent years, we have seen an attitude towards our church that aims to marginalize the historical role of our church. We reject such steps by anyone, by any authority. We stand with our church, Holy Etchmiadzin, as a partner and collaborator.”
Echoing these concerns, the National Democratic Alliance, Armenia’s largest pro-Western opposition party, stated:
“This situation is not a random or spontaneous occurrence; it is a politically orchestrated process aimed at undermining and eradicating the essential foundations of Armenian identity. The goal is to psychologically disarm the Armenian people in the face of ongoing aggression and to strip them of any spiritual values, which are crucial for fostering voluntary resistance and action. …
This barbaric assault on identity demands a serious and careful evaluation, as well as resistance and unity from our society.”
These oppressive, abusive and controlling attacks intend to silence and intimidate the Church, its clergy and the faithful. This unhinged behavior portrays a dangerous trend which we perceive is intended to oppress the voice, actions, and the teachings of the Church and to demoralize the Church and the Armenian faithful. This is not only an issue of religious freedom, Pashinyan’s actions attempt to eviscerate the foundational cultural institutions in which the Armenian people rest their identity.
For these reasons above, we stand with the Armenian Apostolic Church and the Armenian people and we vehemently denounce any and all such actions by PM Pashinyan against the Armenian Apostolic Church.
Sincerely,
- Jane Adolphe, Professor of Law, Ave Maria School of Law Founder & Executive director International Catholic Jurists Forum
- Kristen A. Ullman President Eagle Forum
- Faith J. H. McDonnell Director of Advocacy Katartismos Global
- Dede Laugesen Executive Director, Save the Persecuted Christians
- Jenny Noyes Executive Director New Wineskins Missions Network, Anglican
- Patricia Streeter Co-leader, Anglican Persecuted Church Network