EU turning a blind eye to arrests of Armenian church leaders, letter says

 The European Union has been accused of turning a blind eye to the Armenian government’s actions against the Armenian Apostolic Church.

Opposition leader Samvel Karapetyan, a businessman and Russian national who has been held in detention and is now under house arrest, instructed his legal representatives, Amsterdam & Partners LLP, to initiate legal action against the EU for its support for Armenia.

In a legal letter, the EU is accused of standing by Pashinyan’s government and presenting it as a democratic success story, despite ongoing concerns about its treatment of opposition figures and the Armenian Apostolic Church, which dates back to the fourth century.  

Tensions between church and state in the country have increased since Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan came to power in 2018. Relations deteriorated even more sharply following Armenia’s defeat in the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war.

Several bishops have been arrested, while the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Catholicos Karekin II, has been barred from leaving the country. Critics have accused Pashinyan of acting like a Soviet-era dictator.

For his part, Pashinyan has said he is attempting to save the church from “anti-Christian” and “anti-state” elements. Senior church leaders have been accused of supporting the violent overthrow of a democratically elected government and of condoning calls for the assassination of government ministers.

In the letter, Karapetyan’s legal representatives questioned the validity of Armenia’s recent parliamentary election. Karapetyan’s Strong Armenia party received 23% of the vote, less than half the 49% achieved by Pashinyan’s Civil Contract party.

The election result has been challenged in the courts by Strong Armenia, although the party has said it has little faith in the independence of the courts.

Robert Amsterdam, managing partner of Amsterdam & Partners LLP, said, “The European Union has not acted as a neutral observer. It has chosen to align itself with a government that has overseen widespread arrests, targeted its critics, attacked the Church and weakened democratic safeguards.

EU ignoring arrests of Armenian church leaders: letter | World