They Are Not Political Competitors for Us: Khudatyan

The government is not conducting a campaign related to the Church. As long as the Church has not announced that it will be participating in the 2026 elections as a political party, they are not political competitors for us, although some high-ranking clergymen of the Church have engaged in politics recently.

This statement was made by Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Davit Khudatyan, responding to a question regarding whether the ruling party is concerned that the Church's rating is higher than that of the ruling party.

“As a citizen and a Christian, I am concerned about any violation or apparent violation of one of the fundamental tenets of the Church. I believe that this aspect relates to one of the important traditions of the Church, which has been passed down for centuries. And I think if there is a violation, it should have consequences,” Khudatyan said, referring to Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's call to 'Return the Church to the People.'

In response to a question about whether he and his ministry would join Nikol Pashinyan's call to remove the Catholicos from the cathedral, the minister replied, “There is no such thing in my plans; there is no such thing in the plans of our ministry.”