By Arshaluys Barseghyan
The fact that I am writing the second newsletter in less than a year about how the Armenian Government disseminates Armenian Genocide denial narratives is a clear sign that we are dealing with a pattern and not an exception.
‘We need to understand what happened and why it happened. And how did we perceive it, through whom did we perceive it’, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinayn said recently about the Armenian Genocide, sparking outrage.
What many in Armenia and the diaspora saw as questioning the genocide, Pashinyan’s party framed as part of a broader anti-colonial or anti-Russian narrative, suggesting that the Soviet Union, and now Russia as its successor, had exploited the Armenian tragedy for their own gain.
I might entertain this interpretation if I did not observe a consistent pattern of denial from the government.
Before Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day on 24 April last year, a prominent ruling party MP said Pashinyan aimed to make a full list of victims to ‘build real foundations’ for documenting the genocide — something Turkey has demanded as part of its denial narratives.
On the actual date, Pashinyan said Armenia needed to ‘overcome that trauma’, implying that such trauma was partly to blame for the new ‘shocks’ the country had faced.
In October 2024, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan declared that international recognition of the Armenian Genocide was not ‘our number one priority’, instead suggesting that Armenia’s focus was on normalizing its relations with Turkey and Azerbaijan.
In addition to Armenian Genocide denial, the Armenian government has occasionally criticized Armenia’s coat of arms, which currently depicts the mountain Ararat. It seems likely the government will at some point change the image.
Recently, Pashinyan has made efforts to replace Ararat — an iconic symbol for Armenians, despite being located in Turkey — with Mount Aragats, the highest peak in Armenia. This shift aligns with his theory of ‘Real Armenia’ versus ‘Historical Armenia’, insisting that Armenians must accept the country’s current borders, which he claims would contribute to the country’s security.
It’s clear: Armenia’s new policy on the genocide is shaped by these diplomatic negotiations, aiming to remove a roadblock. However, while Pashinyan seeks ‘full normalisation’ with Turkey ‘without preconditions’, Turkey, as admitted by Mirzoyan, conditions its relations with Armenia with the Armenia–Azerbaijan normalisation process.
I have little faith that Pashinyan’s chosen path, which feels like appeasement, will lead to the desired outcome. Instead, it’s causing significant harm, dishonouring, and renouncing Armenia’s greatest tragedy — and, among many, also my family’s memory.
Arshaluys Barseghyan is a staff writer at OC Media.
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