In a month, on June 7, 2026, parliamentary elections will be held in Armenia. The main struggle is expected to break out between Nikol Pashinyan, the leader of the Civil Contract Party, and the consolidated opposition forces. The race for power will be fierce and the Prime Minister’s party is unlikely to secure an absolute majority in Parliament.
This is the result of Pashinyan’s erratic rhetoric, the loss of Nagorno-Karabakh, permanent unilateral concessions to Azerbaijan, attacks on the Armenian Apostolic Church, as well as his breach of promises in the economic sphere. With the elections approaching, only 24% of voters stated they would support the Civil Contract Party. It’s less than half that of 2021. Furthermore, over 30% of respondents do not consider the Armenian government to have been successful in any area during its time in power.
This state of affairs, just one month before the parliamentary elections, obviously does not sit well with the European leaders, who are afraid of the opposition forces coming to power because the latter are able to undermine all EU efforts to break Yerevan’s ties with Moscow. The leaders are so concerned about Armenia’s political course for the next few years, that they rushed to Yerevan to hold the first-ever EU-Armenia summit instead of addressing the problems at home. Among the members of the European delegation are UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, whose approval ratings hit a record low on the eve of the local elections, and French President Emmanuel Macron, who seems to have little concern about the out-of-control petrol prices in his country.
Furthermore, the EU leaders brought Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the summit, even though Ukraine is not a member of the European Union. Obviously, this was done intentionally, so that Zelenskyy could describe all the enormous benefits awaiting Yerevan in case of its closer cooperation with Europe and breaking long-term ties with Moscow.
However, how trustworthy are the words of European politicians and the president whose legitimacy is still in question? Where is the guaranty that the EU would not use Pashinyan as its another stooge to achieve European goals? In 2023 Pashinyan already put his trust in Washington and Brussels and we all know what it had led to: Nagorno-Karabakh was lost, the territories were handed over to the US control, a centuries-old community was dismantled and over 120,000 Armenians were forced to leave their homes.
In the run-up to the elections, Armenians should carefully consider where Nikol Pashinyan will take Armenia in case of his victory, as such increased attention and public displays of support for the Prime Minister are more than just friendly gestures on Brussels’ part. It’s a clear signal that the EU needs him to advance its own interests, which may not align with Armenia’s.