Latest news in Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, summary. Live

● Local media and social networks are discussing an incident involving Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who, during a trip on the metro, was seen wagging his finger and shouting at a woman. It later emerged that her name is Armine Mosiyan, the daughter of field commander Meruzhan Mosiyan, who was killed during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War in 1993. She was accompanied by her young son. Pashinyan, along with his associates, entered the metro carriage and began handing out badges shaped like the map of Armenia, which he himself wears. In response to accusations of “handing over Karabakh to Azerbaijan,” the prime minister said: “We did everything so that you could live in Karabakh, but in 2023 you, the people of Karabakh, accused me of closing the borders so that people could not leave Karabakh for Armenia. Now you have come here and say: ‘No, we want to return.’ And we spent billions earned by the citizens of Armenia so that you would remain there. So why did you not stay? And do not speak with such contempt about the map of Armenia. Do not try—you who fled—to say that I handed over Karabakh.” Later, when journalists asked why he had spoken so harshly, Pashinyan replied: “If I said anything wrong, I apologize.”

● Members of Nikol Pashinyan’s team also acknowledged that the prime minister spoke rudely to the mother and child. He apologized a second time and invited Armine Mosiyan and her son to a meeting at the government to formally apologize live on air. “If visiting the government is inconvenient for her, I am ready to do the same in the Yerevan metro at a time convenient for her, also live. I am ready to do this at her place of residence or work as well. I love you all,” Pashinyan wrote on social media.

● “Anyone who speaks in such a tone to an Armenian mother, wagging a finger at her in the presence of her son, should not be our prime minister,” said Narek Karapetyan, a representative of the opposition party “Strong Armenia,” commenting on the metro incident. The opposition in Armenia is widely seen as having a largely pro-Russian orientation.

● Armenia’s Human Rights Defender called on government representatives to show sensitivity toward forcibly displaced persons and refugees. “It is necessary to ensure that public discourse contributes to strengthening an atmosphere of solidarity, inclusiveness, and mutual respect,” the ombudsperson said.

● President Vahagn Khachaturyan attended the funeral of the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Ilia II on Sunday in Tbilisi. As part of the visit, he held a personal meeting with Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili. He expressed condolences, and issues of bilateral cooperation and regional developments were also discussed.

● Despite receiving an invitation from the Georgian Patriarchate, the Catholicos of All Armenians was not granted permission to travel to Georgia and take part in the farewell ceremony for Ilia II. The investigator did not lift the existing travel ban imposed on him due to a criminal investigation. Garegin II is accused of obstructing the enforcement of a court decision related to Bishop Arman Saroyan. The Catholicos removed Saroyan from his position as head of the diocese after he supported the prime minister’s initiative to reform the Church. The bishop filed a lawsuit. The court prohibited the Church from preventing him from carrying out his duties until a final ruling, but the Catholicos subsequently defrocked him.

● At the funeral ceremony of the Georgian Patriarch, the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin was represented by the Primate of the Armenian Diocese of Romania, Bishop Tatev Hakobyan, and the Primate of the Armenian Diocese of Georgia, Bishop Kirakos Davtyan.

● “The return to Karabakh will not be an easy task, but through painstaking work this issue can be resolved,” said former President Robert Kocharyan during a campaign meeting with residents of the city of Ashtarak. “For a return, it is first necessary to recognize the right to return. Those returning must also be safe. I do not want to inspire excessive optimism, but in my life there have been situations where it seemed that a problem had no solution at all, yet through persistent work it was resolved,” Kocharyan said.

Parliamentary elections in Armenia are scheduled for June 7, and most observers consider them critically important for the country.

● The leader of the opposition party “New Force,” former mayor of Yerevan Hayk Marutyan, stated that during the election period he will not cooperate either with the ruling party “Civil Contract” or with the alliance led by Robert Kocharyan. “Our party is going to the elections independently. We have very serious disagreements with other forces as well, including the party of Samvel Karapetyan (a Russian dollar billionaire currently under arrest on charges of attempting a coup in Armenia). We see the development of our state along a European model; I think they do not,” Marutyan said.

● Pro-government media have published new details about a citizen of Azerbaijan who was arrested last week for blackmailing the president’s family. His name has been given as Farid Ilgar oglu Salmanov, born in 1976. It is reported that he previously worked as a journalist for the newspapers Ayna, “Zerkalo,” and Bizim əsr, and that after his arrest he fully admitted his guilt. According to the State Security Service, acting in collusion with other individuals abroad, Salmanov contacted high-ranking officials in Azerbaijan and demanded 5 million euros in exchange for not distributing intimate materials allegedly involving the wife of the president’s son, Alena Aliyeva. Media outlets have published materials about the true identity of the woman who was allegedly being passed off as her. It is also reported that “Salmanov sent voice messages to bloggers living abroad, Mehman Huseynov and Gabil Mamedov, who had previously published fabricated video images allegedly of Alena Aliyeva.” Both bloggers are known for their regular and sharp criticism of the president and the Azerbaijani authorities. More details on this story are available here.

● A high-level Azerbaijani delegation attended the funeral in Tbilisi on Sunday of the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Ilia II and conveyed deep condolences. The delegation was led by Speaker of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova and included the Chairman of the Caucasus Muslim Board Allahshukur Pashazade, Deputy Prime Minister Samir Sharifov, and a group of members of parliament.

● A significant increase in the salaries of top government officials has been announced. The salaries of the prime minister, ministers, committee chairs and their deputies have been increased by 60–80 percent, while the salaries of heads of local executive authorities have nearly doubled. The salaries of the prosecutor general and the speaker of parliament have increased fourfold. This decision has sparked widespread public debate against the backdrop of generally low wages across the country. For comparison: the monthly salary of the parliamentary speaker now amounts to 17,000 manats (approximately $10,000), the minimum wage is 400 manats (approximately $350), and the average monthly salary is 1,100 manats (approximately $650). A recent World Bank report noted that most income in Azerbaijan is concentrated in the hands of a small group of people.

● From February 28, when military actions began in Iran, to March 22, more than 3,000 people have been evacuated from Iran to Azerbaijan. Among them, 486 are citizens of Azerbaijan, while the rest are citizens of dozens of countries around the world.

● In connection with the Novruz and Ramadan holidays, the days from March 20 to March 30 have been declared non-working days in Azerbaijan.

● Heydar Aliyev International Airport has been recognized as the best airport in Central Asia and the CIS in the Skytrax World Airport Awards 2026. Local media report that the competition is considered one of the most authoritative in the global aviation industry and is based on the largest annual independent passenger survey. Since 1999, the study has evaluated service quality at more than 565 airports worldwide.

● The Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Ilia II was buried at the patriarchal Sioni Cathedral on March 22. A memorial service was held at Sameba Cathedral, after which a funeral procession on foot, involving hundreds of thousands of people, made its way to Sioni Cathedral. A photo/video report is here.

● Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew also took part in the mourning ceremonies. He addressed parishioners and the Georgian people with a speech in which he called the Georgian Patriarch a “brilliant brother” and said that “the counsel, teachings, and prayers of Ilia II are a source of strength for believers.”

● Archbishop Zenon of Dmanisi and Agarak-Tashir stated that he is not interested in taking the patriarchal throne. He said that there are at least two bishops who could assume this position in the future.

📷 Photo: The tomb of the Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II at Sioni Cathedral.

Top stories in Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia from 16-20 March, 2026