$600,000—Armenian lobbying with Turkish connections

While Azerbaijan continues firing every day, disregarding Armenia’s calls for explanations, it turns out that the Armenian government has hired a lobbying firm in Washington to promote its interests in the United States. The firm is supposed to be paid $50,000 per month. At first glance, this seems like an important decision; the government has finally decided to advance Armenia’s interests in the U.S., where Turkey and Azerbaijan have been spending millions of dollars for years on their own lobbying efforts.

However, there is a significant contradiction. The lobbying for Armenia will be handled by an organization that has been paid by Turkey for years to advance its own interests. Interestingly, neither the Armenian government nor its embassy in Washington has announced this deal. American media uncovered this last month when the contract was submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice on April 8, 2025, as required by law.

Why has Armenia chosen Mercury among hundreds of other Washington-based firms? Is it a coincidence that both Pashinyan and Erdoğan hired the same lobbyist?

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