Armenia Alliance MPs brief Western diplomats on political repression and democratic backsliding

(Horizon Media / YEREVAN) – Members of Armenia’s opposition Armenia Alliance parliamentary faction met on September 9 with representatives of several Western diplomatic missions to raise concerns over the accelerating erosion of democratic institutions, growing political repression and the concentration of power in Armenia.

The meeting, initiated by the Armenia Alliance, brought together representatives of the embassies of the United Kingdom, the United States, the Netherlands, Spain, the Czech Republic and Estonia, as well as the European Union Delegation to Armenia.

Opposition lawmakers presented a pattern of serious human rights violations, weakening institutional checks and balances and the increasing concentration of state power around Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. According to the faction, these developments have contributed to the formation of an increasingly authoritarian system of governance.

Particular attention was given to what the systematic political persecution and pressure against government critics. The lawmakers cited the recent criminal proceedings against Armenia’s second president, Robert Kocharyan, and members of his family as part of a broader campaign targeting prominent opposition figures.

The Armenia Alliance representatives said state institutions, including law-enforcement bodies and the judiciary, are increasingly being deployed as instruments of political retaliation rather than functioning independently of the executive.

They also warned that the pressure on opposition forces is unfolding at a politically sensitive moment, as the government prepares for further steps in its negotiations with Azerbaijan. The faction said that sidelining or intimidating opposition leaders could reduce domestic resistance to additional concessions demanded by Baku.

The meeting comes amid mounting opposition criticism of Armenia’s democratic trajectory and growing questions over the independence of state institutions, the judiciary and law-enforcement agencies under the current government.