By Arshaluys Barseghyan
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has faced backlash after calling Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians “runaways” during an argument with a refugee from the region on Sunday. After initially denying that he had used the insult, he later apologized the same evening.
The argument, which was caught on video and spread widely across social media, took place on the metro while Pashinyan was conducting his Civil Contract “inter-party campaign” in Yerevan. While on the campaign trail, Pashinyan has traveled across Armenia to meet constituents. As part of his travels, Pashinyan has been gifting pins with the shape of Armenia’s internationally recognized borders. The “Real Armenia” narrative — meaning that Armenians must accept modern Armenia within its current borders — has been a key part of Pashinyan’s political messaging.
The heated discussion lasted around five minutes and began after Pashinyan asked if he could give a pin to a boy with his mother, which they refused.
The woman, later identified as Armine Mosiyan, was a refugee from Nagorno-Karabakh. In her rejection of the gift, Mosiyan told Pashinyan that they have a “different map.”
Although Pashinyan initially appeared to accept the disagreement, after a few seconds he returned to the woman, pointing the pin again and telling her to take into account that her son “will live within this map.”
