ANN/Groong — The English-Language Armenian Podcast

• EP591: Hovik and Asbed mark the sixth anniversary of the 44-Day War while examining Armenia’s deepening crisis over historical memory, escalating tensions between the state and the Armenian Church, international concern over election integrity, and Armenia’s isolated position as Azerbaijan demolishes Artsakh’s Armenian cultural heritage.
• EP592: Harut Sassounian examines Armenia’s identity crisis amid escalating conflict between Pashinyan’s government and the Armenian Apostolic Church, discussing Catholicos Garegin II’s statements at the May 2025 World Council of Churches conference in Bern, state attacks on senior clergy, the constitutional role of the Church in national identity, and Armenia-Diaspora relations following the June 2026 parliamentary elections.

Armenia faces domestic political turmoil, border security breaches, and international pressure over the Azerbaijani serviceman incident and church persecution, while peace negotiations proceed amid regional tensions.

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Topics:

• September 27 war anniversary and memory
• Pashinyan escalates campaign against Church
• PACE raises concerns over elections
• Armenia, Turkey, Azerbaijan at UNGA
• Witkoff reveals Turkish regional advisers
• Opposition faces post-election divisions
• Arrests and prosecutions over speech
• France and Azerbaijan move toward normalization

Episode 591 | Recorded: September 27, 2026

• EP588: Hovik and Asbed reflect on Armenia’s 35th independence anniversary amid the aftermath of Artsakh’s ethnic cleansing, Armenian prisoners of war held in Baku, rising citizenship costs, government opacity over war casualties, and deepening Turkey-Azerbaijan strategic coordination.
• EP589: Arthur Khachatryan, MP from Armenia Alliance, discusses opposition strategy after the June 2026 election, territorial concessions including Tigranashen, Azerbaijani attacks on Armenian heritage, TRIPP and Azerbaijan’s control over transit corridors, the future of Russia’s 102nd military base, and escalating threats against opposition parties.
• EP590: Dziunik Aghajanian examines Russia’s September 2026 parliamentary elections, the Armenia-Russia confrontation over the 102nd base, asset confiscation targeting Russian interests, and how Middle East escalation reshapes Armenia’s strategic environment.

Pashinyan met with Turkish President Erdogan and promoted TRIPP while attending the UN General Assembly, as Azerbaijan escalates cultural erasure in occupied Artsakh and domestic tensions over church governance intensify.

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Guest(s):

• Dziunik Aghajanian

Topics:

• Russian parliamentary election outcome
• Middle East escalation and the Houthis
• Armenia-Russia confrontation, including the 102nd base
• Asset confiscation, anti-corruption, and Russian interests
• Azerbaijan-Armenia “durable peace” tensions
• Armenian opposition strategy

Episode 590 | Recorded: September 23, 2026

#Armenia #Russia #SouthCaucasus #Azerbaijan #MiddleEast #UkraineWar #ArmenianPolitics #Geopolitics

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Guest(s):

• Arthur Khachatryan

Topics:

• Reflections on Independence Day
• Post-election opposition strategy
• Tigranashen and other territorial concessions
• Azerbaijani attacks on Armenian heritage
• Azerbaijani control over TRIPP access
• Future of Russia’s 102nd base
• Asset confiscation and Russia tensions
• Attacks and threats against the ARF

Episode 589 | Recorded: September 22, 2026

#Armenia #ArthurKhachatryan #ArmeniaAlliance #TRIPP #Tigranashen #Artsakh #SouthCaucasus #ArmenianPolitics

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Topics:

• Armenia marks 35 years independent
• Artsakh remembered three years later
• Armenian POWs remain in Baku
• Ukraine strikes deep inside Russia
• Turkey-Azerbaijan deepen strategic coordination
• Citizenship costs rise sharply
• Government opacity over war casualties

Episode 588 | Recorded: September 22, 2026

#Armenia #Artsakh #UkraineWar #ArmenianPOWs #Azerbaijan #Turkey #SouthCaucasus #ArmenianPolitics

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Guest(s):

• Warwick Powell

Topics:

• SCO and BRICS summit outcomes
• BRICS financial architecture and currencies
• AI safety and strategic competition
• AI sovereignty for smaller states

Episode 587 | Recorded: September 17, 2026

#BRICS #China #SCO #Multipolarity #Artificial0Intelligence #AISafety #DigitalSovereignty #TRIPP