How propaganda in pro-Russian Yerevan deceives collective West Analysis by UNIAN

The Ukrainian political and economic observer Svetlana Kushnir has written an article for the Kyiv-based news agency UNIAN analysing the pro-Russian propaganda reigning in Yerevan, which deceives the collective West.

 “Articles about the democratic movement of Armenians, claiming that Armenia is the only democratic country in the Caucasus, began to appear in English-language versions of Armenian publications intended for readers uninformed of the realities of the Caucasus. This rhetoric was the main message in the publication of ‘Past’ (newspaper), dedicated to the need for Western and international assistance to Armenia,” Kushnir said.

"While Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is proclaiming on all sides that ‘democracy is Armenia's main international brand and a key factor in preserving the country's sovereignty’, the Western media has already published a series of pieces on how Armenia helps Russia circumvent sanctions and is generally a transport and military hub for it,” the analysis says.

The fact that Armenia remains a classic Eastern autocracy is evidenced by statements by individual Armenian politicians as well as numerous facts. In a joint statement, 18 Armenian NGOs accuse the authorities of undermining positive trends in the consolidation of newly emerging democratic foundations and the establishment of electoral institutions.

Murad Papazyan, co-chair of the Coordination Council of Armenian Organisations of France (CCAF), says the Armenian government is violating the fundamental principles of the rule of law, the presumption of innocence and freedom of speech.

Ruben Melikyan, deputy chairman of the Republican Party of Armenia, speaks about political persecution, while Taguhi Tovmasyan, chairman of the Armenian parliament's Standing Committee on Protection of Human Rights and Public Affairs, notes: "Every day the government deceives the international community that Armenia is a democratic country.”

The realities of "democracy" in Armenia, as the author describes it, are the imprisonment of opposition MP Armen Charchan and the use of hacking software Pegasus, found on the smartphone of the head of the opposition parliamentary faction "I have honour" Artur Vanetsyan.

“These are harassment of the media, initiation of ‘fake’ criminal cases, non-admission of ‘undesirable persons’ into the country, and arrests of activists. These are exactly the signs of the ‘united democracy of the Caucasus’: classic authoritarian methods of pressure on the opposition, independent journalists and human rights activists who, in particular, represent the interests of national minorities," the Ukrainian edition writes.