Pashinyan Accused of Using War Fears in Reelection Bid

Gohar Meloyan, of the newly established Strong Armenia party led by Russian-Armenian businessman Samvel Karapetian, said the prime minister was relying on “threatening people with war” as his only reelection strategy. She said her party would not scrap existing agreements but would seek to ensure they serve Armenia’s interests.

“This is a deliberate tactic. But our society must understand that the opposite is true. If they remain in power, there will be war, driven by a pattern of unilateral concessions, including concessions on our very identity,” Meloyan said.

Levon Zurabyan, a leader of the opposition Armenian National Congress party, said Pashinyan’s remarks undermined his own claims of having achieved peace with Azerbaijan.

“If he had brought genuine peace, then that peace would not depend on the outcome of elections in Armenia,” Zurabyan said. “He has finally admitted with this statement that he has not brought any peace. What he has brought are new threats, new dangers, and new risks of war.”

In August 2025, nearly two years after Baku’s military takeover of Nagorno-Karabakh and the exodus of the region’s Armenian population, Armenia and Azerbaijan initiated a peace agreement aimed at ending more than three decades of conflict.

However, President Aliyev has said Baku will not sign the deal unless Armenia amends its constitution to remove the reference to the Declaration of Independence. Under Armenian law, such a change would require approval through a national referendum.

Pashinyan has pledged to pursue that change as part of his government’s broader efforts to normalize relations with Azerbaijan. Opposition groups have criticized his stance, arguing that removing the reference to the declaration from the constitution would amount to a unilateral concession that could lead to further demands from Azerbaijan without ensuring lasting peace.