Armenian society turns away from revanchist politics Karapetyan’s “new force” fails to gain momentum despite big money

The attempt to create a so-called "new force" in Armenia, backed by a large organisation, substantial financial injections, and serious media support, ended in the expected and humiliating failure.

According to Armenian media reports, the rally organised in support of Samvel Karapetyan—financed by this very Russian-Armenian billionaire and his team, who present themselves as an alternative to the current government—gathered a mere 7,500 people.

This figure looks especially pathetic against the backdrop of the opposition’s repeated claims over the years that the "majority of the people" are against Prime Minister Pashinyan’s government.

Indeed, the rating of Armenia’s current prime minister is not particularly high, but as we can see, his opponents’ ratings are even lower. This was clearly demonstrated by yesterday’s "protest action," which perfectly fits the phrase "a lot of noise about nothing."

Moreover, it turns out that even this comparatively modest number of rally participants was ensured through administrative resources and pressure. People were brought in by buses, and T-shirts and caps were distributed on-site to simulate a large turnout. Furthermore, a significant portion of the protesters consisted of employees of the company "Electric Networks of Armenia" from Karapetyan’s business empire.

In addition, individuals who previously lived in the temporarily occupied territories of Azerbaijan were also involved in the action.

In short, everything that took place resembled a classic example of pseudo-mobilisation, lacking any genuine popular impulse. By the way, this is far from the first fiasco for those trying to drag Armenia back to the era of clan rule and revanchist ideology. Previously, Archbishop Bagrat Srbazan (Galstanyan), supported by the Armenian Church and the Karabakh clan represented by Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan, also failed to mobilise the population even for large symbolic actions.

All of this happens with the opposition forces for the simple reason that they continue to live in the illusions of the past. In today’s Armenia, the old methods—when political reality could be artificially shaped to suit one’s interests—no longer have the same effect. They should have understood this after the failure in the 2021 parliamentary elections, which took place shortly after the devastating defeat in the 44-day war.

Accordingly, attempts by Moscow, Paris, or other external players to revive opposition forces in Armenia increasingly end in political failure. All this indicates that a portion of Armenian society, having gone through defeats and losses—which could have been avoided if the previous and current leadership of the country had acted within the framework of international law—has accepted the new reality and no longer wishes to be a tool in foreign geopolitical games.

Neither money, nor powerful media manipulation, nor church support can anymore create a "popular movement" from scratch. Moreover, the very idea of changing the government and stoking tensions has become, for the majority of the republic’s residents, synonymous with troubles, destruction, and defeat. Many in Armenia already realise that the only way forward is economic cooperation, open borders, infrastructure projects, and normalisation of relations with neighbours—primarily Azerbaijan and Türkiye—a fact the so-called opposition stubbornly refuses to acknowledge.

Today, the South Caucasus can be said to have entered a historic phase in which choices determine the future: on one side of the scale is the chance to build a region of peace, good neighbourliness, and mutual benefit; on the other—masked attempts, disguised as "national interests" and "patriotism," to revive conflicts, isolation, and violence. From this perspective, the rally organised in Yerevan with funds from Samvel Karapetyan served as a kind of litmus test: it showed that for a significant part of Armenian society, the priority remains the future, not the past, despite attempts to lure them with empty slogans and PR campaigns.