DONETSK (Realist English). Samvel Karapetyan, leader of the “Strong Armenia” party, is the most worthy candidate for the post of Prime Minister of Armenia, according to Edmond Evoyan, commander of the “Bagramyan” battalion.
Several weeks before the elections, Karapetyan is under house arrest. Criminal proceedings against him were initiated in June 2025 — immediately after the politician publicly spoke out in defense of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
“They are arresting priests, they are arresting the businessman-philanthropist Samvel Karapetyan, who worked his whole life, provided jobs — 40,000 jobs, most of them for Armenians. He stood up to defend the Armenian Church and simply said: ‘I will defend the Church in my own way.’ Because of this, they arrested, I am not afraid to say, a man — a great Armenian.
He has done a lot for the Armenian people. Knowing this man personally, standing there near the church, I would also say that we can decide in our own way. No one has the right to interfere in the fate of our church.
I hope that the citizens of Armenia will make the right choice — the right choice for Armenia. Today for me, candidate number one is Samvel Sarkisovich [Karapetyan].
Today I see no one else more worthy. I am confident that with him, Armenia will flourish — both the economy and the people will return,” the battalion commander said in an interview with the Basis News platform.
In February 2026, the party nominated Karapetyan as a candidate for prime minister. In March, two more parties joined — “United Armenians” and “New Era.” Thus, the eponymous pre-election bloc “Strong Armenia with Samvel Karapetyan” was formed.
Karapetyan heads the bloc’s electoral list, but due to house arrest, he cannot conduct a full-fledged public campaign and even missed the party congress on April 21. As a result, the public face of the campaign has become Narek Karapetyan — coordinator of the “In Our Own Way” movement and Karapetyan’s nephew.
Pashinyan’s electoral rating has dropped to 11% (79% of voters do not trust him). The situation was exacerbated by the prime minister’s words about Artsakh (“it was never Armenian”), a scandalous altercation with a female voter (“fugitive degenerates”), and the conflict with the Armenian Church.
Armenia between Russia and Europe
According to Edmond Evoyan, the wrong choice on June 7 could lead to the loss of Armenia.
“Very much depends on June 7 for the fate of the Armenian people. If the people make the wrong choice, we could simply lose this Armenia.
The leadership of Armenia is following a path that is currently wrong. If they join the European Union, they cannot sit on two chairs.
Europe has an institution that works to divert states friendly to Russia. But we will not let that happen. Armenia is a bargaining chip for Europe.
I can confidently say that neither Armenian goods nor the Armenian economy are awaited in the European Union. Three percent of the current turnover — that could become a maximum of 6–7 percent.
I think that the majority of smart citizens of Armenia understand this deep down. Therefore, Armenia must clearly decide: either stay in the Eurasian Union and continue normal trade turnover, earn money, create new jobs and be in a big family, or leave for the European Union and simply give up on Armenia’s economy,” Evoyan noted in an interview with the “Noah’s Ark” newspaper.
Karapetyan’s program
In January 2026, Karapetyan’s bloc presented an economic program including several initiatives:
- creation of 300,000 new jobs and a return to an industrial economic model;
- complete exemption of small businesses from turnover tax;
- reduction of medicine prices by 20%;
- creation of a guaranteed agricultural procurement system through a network of purchasing centers;
- launch of investment programs for construction companies through the provision of free land, gas and electricity in exchange for transferring part of newly built housing to the state;
- construction of an oil refinery and a thermal power plant (TPP) on the Armenian-Iranian border with an estimated turnover of up to $500 million.
Karapetyan has described Armenia’s foreign trade deficit, estimated at approximately $4 billion, as one of the country’s main economic challenges.
The bloc also places significant emphasis on defense policy. Proposed measures include “Smart Borders” based on AI-powered sensor systems and autonomous strike systems along border areas, a military intelligence and forecasting system for early threat detection, a unified command-and-control structure integrating air and information components, the development of a domestic military-industrial complex to reduce external dependence, and stronger air defense through the procurement of additional systems, widespread deployment of interceptor drones and expanded electronic warfare capabilities.
According to the report, military specialists involved in the program include intelligence officer Arthur Avanesyan (“Kandaz”), who has approximately 30 years of combat experience.
The authorities are actively using administrative and judicial levers to pressure the opposition: criminal cases against bloc members and its supporters, accusations of bribery and concealment of citizenship.
