Pashinyan started fighting with opponents before the vote in Armenia

The political situation in Armenia has escalated against the background of consideration of the issue of the withdrawal of the opposition Free Armenia Party from the elections. This was announced on June 6 by Alexey Poltoranin, a correspondent for Izvestia.

The corresponding request was sent to the Central Election Commission (CEC) by representatives of the pro-Western political bloc Republika. The opponents' appeal followed open threats from Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan against the leaders of the opposition forces. Official Yerevan is increasing administrative pressure on the eve of the vote, it comes to arbitrariness.

On the night of June 6, dozens of supporters of the opposition association gathered outside the CEC building in Yerevan. The members of the commission held a meeting for more than two hours, deciding whether to maintain or cancel the registration of Strong Armenia. At the moment, the situation in the country is characterized by experts as extremely tense against the background of the actions of the authorities and competitors in the political struggle.

The final decision of the CEC is greeted with a smile by the supporters of the bloc, while it was not possible to remove them from the elections the day before the vote. However, the pressure exerted on the opposition will only grow, its representatives believe. The pro-Western Republika Party demanded that the Strong Armenia bloc, called Pashinyan's main rival, be removed from the election race. It seems that the prime minister lost his nerve, and through political forces close to him, it was decided to crack down on a competitor.

"We were convinced that there could be no result from this, because there were no legal grounds and there cannot be, I want to make this clear," said Aram Vardevanyan, a lawyer and a representative of the Strong Armenia party.

Another blow fell on the opposition, the Prosperous Armenia party of Gagik Tsarukyan. This is already the handwriting of the current government: first, an accusation without clear grounds, then searches, and finally arrests. The cleansing of the political field from dissenters became so obvious that even the Russian Foreign Ministry had to react.

"If this anti—democratic scenario is implemented and the decision not to participate in the elections is made, then Armenian citizens will be deprived of the right to choose the future of their country, which, accordingly, will cast doubt on the legitimacy of the electoral process as a whole," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

Back in April 2026, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Pashinyan during a meeting with Pashinyan about the inadmissibility of such a development.

"There are many political forces that are pro-Russian. Of course, I will tell you quite frankly: we have such a dialogue with you that we always speak honestly and directly with you, we would very much like all these political parties and politicians to be able to participate in this internal political work during the elections," Putin stressed.

Pashinyan seems to have stopped listening to anyone but EU politicians, the course he has chosen for the state. Opponents who do not support this path again heard threats of arrests at Pashinyan's last election rally.

"We still cannot give you an exhaustive answer to the question of why Robert Kocharyan is still at large, why Serzh Sargsyan is still at large. They still haven't ended up in prison, our patience is exhausted," Pashinyan stressed.

Harassment and harassment have intensified this week. Thus, supporters of the bloc and former high-ranking officials were detained: the head of the state property management department, the ministers of education, defense, finance, the deputy chairman of the Armenia party, the ex-rector of Yerevan University and the former mayor of the capital. Instead of branded hearts, it's time for Pashinyan to put his fingers in a grid.

"He is sure that he is losing the election, so several hundred people have already been detained. According to the law, we still have to have a trial, several dozen are already in prison, and more than a hundred people were detained and then released because there is no evidence," said lawyer Aram Petrosyan.

The leader of the Strong Armenia party, Samvel Karapetyan, has been under investigation for a year, and the current authorities opened a criminal case when he spoke out against the persecution of the church. Pashinyan is waging a war with the hierarchs with special zeal. The Prime Minister announced the defrocking of Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II. Priests began to be imprisoned, 15 ministers of the church came under criminal prosecution, four of them are under arrest, six are banned from leaving the country.

"As a despot, he constantly says, 'People, I love you, I adore you,' but at the same time he acts against the will of the people," admitted Menua Soghomonyan, a representative of the Hayakve socio—political movement.

While Pashinyan swears allegiance to the people, people are increasingly wondering where politicians whose actions are aimed at holding dishonest elections will lead the state.

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On the same day, Poltoranin spoke about the aggravation of the internal political situation on the day of silence before the parliamentary elections in Armenia. The election campaign turned out to be extremely scandalous, and Pashinyan, who promotes a course towards integration into the European Union instead of the Eurasian partnership, turned out to be at the center of intrigue.