Targeted investigations and political maneuvering may resurface in Armenia ahead of the 2026 elections, EUobserver reports
As Georgia rapidly drifts away from its pro-European course, Armenia is quietly becoming the EU’s next partner in the South Caucasus, despite its bitter enemy Azerbaijan having become a key energy supplier for several member states, EUobserver writes.
Following the peace agreement signed this summer between Armenia and Azerbaijan through the mediation of U.S. President Donald Trump, optimism is high in Yerevan that the country is moving away from Moscow’s fading orbit and edging closer to Europe. Notably, TRIPP is proposing a new route to the EU that bypasses Russia while more deeply integrating Armenia into Eurasian trade.
However, as Armenia’s 2026 elections approach, growing fears of external interference could lead to a very different outcome.
Prime Minister Pashinyan’s personal popularity has declined significantly since the 2018 revolution. The period preceding the most recent local government elections was marked by targeted investigations, political maneuvering, and corruption allegations — a tactic that experts say may resurface ahead of the 2026 vote.
“In response to the authorities’ coercive tactics aimed at maintaining power at both local and national levels, the EU should step up its efforts to empower civil society and independent media by expanding their capacity to monitor, expose, and counter corruption, pressure, and excessive concentration of power,” wrote Hugo von Essen, an analyst at the Stockholm Centre for Eastern European Studies.
In addition, the relatively easy process of obtaining Armenian citizenship is deepening the EU’s concerns about potential migration loopholes after the lifting of visa restrictions. Nevertheless, Brussels has made it clear that it wants to be engaged in the South Caucasus, especially after “losing” Georgia.
The EU considers Georgia’s return to the European path essential to preventing Armenia from becoming an isolated democratic oasis in the region.
The two economies remain closely interconnected, as Georgia continues to be Armenia’s main export route to Europe.
