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Vignettes on continuity and change in Yerevan

Vignettes on continuity and change in Yerevan

“Assalamu alaykum.”

Nobody had ever approached me in Yerevan and greeted me that way before.

Quite instinctively, I responded, “Wa alaykum salam.”

He was an ordinary-looking man, perhaps around my age, perhaps a bit older. He was balding and wearing dark clothing. A woman in a bright hijab accompanied him, pushing a stroller with a cute toddler. We were about to cross Teryan Street, heading toward the Swan Lake corner by the Opera in central Yerevan.

“I am from Falasteen. Please, would you help …”

I placed my hand on my heart and bowed slightly with a regretful, empathetic expression. That is how I respond most of the time to those who ask for money. I grew up in a society where begging was widespread and often a racket. It’s rare that I can bring myself to give money to strangers on the street. I am always wary, and in a city like Yerevan, I imagine I most likely will run into the same people — as I have over the years come across those who tell the same story and try to sell the same scam. Now, I didn’t know this family at all or whether they were running a scam. But all the same, I couldn’t bring myself to help them.

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Who is an Armenian Gharib in the 21st Century?

Who is an Armenian Gharib in the 21st Century?

I was recently quite moved by one of the fantastic posts of the Armenian Museum of America’s Sound Archive series. It featured the voice of Karnig Kuludjian from 1945. A genocide survivor who ended up in the Chicago area, Kuludjian expresses confidence on the disc now online that the war in Europe would soon come to an end in favor of the Allies and the boys would return home. It is a fun recording, quite organic, made at home — a rarity for the era. You can hear the muffled voices of people in the background, laughing at Kuludjian’s amusing observations. The disc becomes even more compelling with a wonderful à propos song: Gharib Akhper, a work addressed to, roughly, a brother in exile, often framed as brothers in arms, expressing hope that they will come back. It is a song I have heard my father sing many times around many tables. So, I got a good sense of what that gathering in Chicago eighty years and more ago must have been like — beautiful, charming, melancholic.

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The Armenian elections and what they mean for Ankara, Baku and Brussels

The Armenian elections and what they mean for Ankara, Baku and Brussels

Researcher Nareg Seferian joins Turkey recap editor Diego Cupolo to outline the upcoming Armenia elections on June 7, 2026.

Incumbent Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan is seeking re-election on a “Real Armenia” platform, which seeks to downplay historical territorial disputes beyond Armenia’s current borders in favor of EU integration and more cooperation with Azerbaijan and Turkey.

It’s a high stakes vote with implications for not just Armenia’s foreign policy alignments, but also regional trade and transit routes, as Turkey and Armenia are currently pursuing normalization efforts that, if successful, could reopen a land crossing on their shared border.

This podcast covers national election dynamics as well as the state of play for Baku-Yerevan peace negotiations and their impacts on Turkey-Armenia bilateral relations. We also review the prospects for EU-Armenia ties and the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) aka Zangezur corridor.

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The Warcast – Armenia and Azerbaijan Sign a Peace Deal

The Warcast – Armenia and Azerbaijan Sign a Peace Deal

On Aug. 8, the White House hosted the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia as they signed a peace deal. The agreement comes after decades of on-and-off fighting. Nareg Seferian joins the Warcast to walk through key parts of the agreement and regional implications.

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Armenia, Turkey and the Zangezur corridor

Armenia, Turkey and the Zangezur corridor

Independent researcher Nareg Seferian joined Turkey recap editor-in-chief Diego Cupolo to discuss Armenia-Azerbaijan peace talks and their implications for the region.

They covered the July 10 meeting between Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani Pres. Ilham Aliyev in Abu Dhabi and their efforts to finalize a peace agreement in the aftermath of the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War.

The peace talks will not only impact Eurasian energy and trade – through projects like the Zangezur corridor – but could also revive stalled normalization efforts between Turkey and Armenia.

All of the above has repercussions for the balance of power in the South Caucasus, where Russia, Iran, the European Union and the United States compete for influence.

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Right of Return of the Armenians of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh)

Right of Return of the Armenians of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh)

Yeghia Tashjian, Salma Waheedi, Thomas Becker, Nareg Seferian

This work examines the forced deportation of Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh
(also known as Artsakh in Armenian) by Azerbaijan, defining it as ethnic cleansing.
Drawing on Freedom House’s comprehensive report on the topic, and the resolution
passed by the International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) on Nagorno-
Karabakh on September 20241, we conclude that Azerbaijan’s systematic attacks, forced
displacement, and destruction of cultural heritage are elements of a premeditated
campaign to expel Nagorno-Karabakh of its ethnic Armenians that triggers international
legal obligations, including a sustainable right of return. It brings together perspectives
from Armenian and international experts in political science and human rights law to
analyze the historical, legal, and geopolitical dimensions of the crisis. The paper
discusses the Armenian presence in the region from antiquity to the establishment of the
Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast under Soviet rule, the independence movement,
and subsequent wars, focusing on the 2020 and 2023 conflicts.

The international response, including statements from the EU, UN, and ICJ,
highlights the obligation to ensure safe repatriation and the protection of Armenian rights
and cultural heritage. It underscores key violations of international law, including breaches
of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, ICCPR, and Geneva Conventions, and
advocates for accountability in international legal forums.

The paper offers actionable recommendations for the United States government
to support the right of return, including securing international guarantees, advocating for
the preservation of Armenian cultural sites, and holding Azerbaijani officials accountable
for war crimes. It emphasizes the necessity of sustained international engagement, legal
mechanisms, and Armenian government support to ensure the dignity, security, and
cultural legacy of the displaced ethnic Armenians, laying the groundwork for a just
resolution and enduring peace in the region.

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The Nzhdeh Effect

The Nzhdeh Effect

With the ongoing security concerns and the potential for further and broader conflict, the period immediately following the end of 2020 had drawn more and more attention to Syunik —the pan-handle of southern Armenia. It’s the only land connection with Iran and, at that time, with Artsakh. Syunik is a space of key strategic importance for the country and for the region, including its industrial value mainly due to the numerous mines dotting its landscape.

In the autumn of 2021, ethnographic fieldwork in and around Kapan and Goris, the major cities of Syunik, brought to light the richness of local perceptions on the history and geography of the province.

“The other provinces of Armenia should not get upset,” a native of Syunik asserted. “It is the most important marz of the country.” According to another interviewee, “Syunik has the status of a super-marz.” Another favorite reprise among the local inhabitants is that “Syunik is the backbone of the country,”—a saying that is more widely cited in Armenia. The implication is that the country cannot exist without it. “Whoever heard of anyone standing confidently on their feet without a backbone, much less an entire country or nation?” This is an argument that is especially popular because it is associated with a key, if somewhat controversial, figure from the past century Garegin Nzhdeh (1886-1955).

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Zohrab Information Center adds Liturgy and Liturgical Materials Collection

Zohrab Information Center adds Liturgy and Liturgical Materials Collection

A collection of mostly unpublished materials related to the liturgy and worship services of the Armenian Church is now available for the interested public to view at the Zohrab Information Center. The Liturgy and Liturgical Materials Collection was processed by Andrew Kayaian, librarian of St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary and St. Nersess Armenian Seminary, and Nareg Seferian, who completed his doctoral studies at Virginia Tech’s School of Public and International Affairs in 2023.

The collection consists of four series. The first brings together a number of documents pertaining to the Badarak or the Divine Liturgy – that is, the service with which the faithful are most familiar from ordinary Sundays. Armenian churches tend to have books in their pews with the text and order of the Badarak, often in Armenian with translation and transliteration so that parishioners can follow along. These official pew books are usually published by the various dioceses of the Armenian Church and have made their way into library collections around the world. What makes the Zohrab Information Center’s collection unique is that it consists of more ephemeral or local materials put together by individual priests, parishes, or others for specific occasions and local needs, which otherwise would be lost or unknown if not gathered together here. This series in the collection also includes materials related to the various aspects of Sunday worship, such as Gospel readings, the confession, and the creed.

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