Just gossip: Ararat Mirzoyan denies government campaign against Armenian Church

ArmInfo.Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan attempted to justify the governmnet-led campaign against the  Armenian Apostolic Church, labelling such claims as mere "gossip".

"This is gossip. I disagree with such formulations. It's not true."  Mirzoyan  made this statement in response to a question from a European member of parliament about whether the Armenian authorities' anti-church campaign and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's statements about reforming the Armenian Apostolic Church contradict the principles of democracy, when addressing the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).

"Clergy are not persecuted in Armenia. However, I want to ask a question: imagine a situation where some citizens call for the violent overthrow of the legitimately elected government, as well as the murder of its representatives, including me. What would your reaction be? IN Armenia, there is the rule of law, and all citizens must act within that framewrk, including the clergy," Mirzoyan tried to justify the situation.

It should be noted that since May 2025, the Armenian authorities have launched an active anti-church policy and are seeking the resignation of Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II, who holds this position for life. This campaign targets both clergy and citizens who support the Church. Currently, four high-ranking clergy members are in prison on trumped-up charges as part of this anti-church campaign. Moreover, the Armenian Prime Minister and 10 schismatic bishops recently signed a framework document on the so-called renewal of the Armenian Church.