Top stories in Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia from 3-7 November, 2025

● Armenia has officially received the EU–Armenia Visa Liberalisation Action Plan. The document was presented by Johannes Luchner, Deputy Director-General of the European Commission’s Directorate for Migration and Home Affairs.

The plan contains 74 benchmarks grouped into four areas:
– document security and biometrics;
– border management, migration management and asylum procedures;
– public order and the fight against organised crime, human trafficking, drugs and corruption;
– external relations and fundamental rights.

● Armenia is drafting a new Constitution. Justice Minister Srbuhi Galyan said on Public Television that the changes are based on decentralisation and a rebalancing of powers.

“First, we need to strengthen parliament. In the case of the first election, we are abandoning the principle of a guaranteed stable majority — if no majority is formed, there will be a second election, not a runoff,” Galyan explained. The parliament will also receive broader powers in forming the government.

● Despite closed borders, Armenia’s trade balance with Turkey remains highly uneven, energy security expert Vage Davtyan wrote.

According to him, Armenia imported USD 336 million worth of Turkish goods in 2024, while exports to Turkey did not reach even USD 0.5 million.

● The detained mayor of Gyumri, Vardan Ghukasyan, has been hospitalised. His lawyer, Zaruhi Postandjyan, said his condition had sharply deteriorated at Yerevan’s “Kentron” detention facility. He has since been moved to a medical centre.

Ghukasyan was arrested on 20 October and is charged with large-scale bribery.

● Armenia ranked 8th in the “Most Interesting New Destination” category at the Wanderlust Reader Travel Awards 2025. Readers of the British magazine vote annually for their favourite destinations, travel operators and brands. The winners were announced at the WTM London tourism expo.

● India’s Defence Secretary Amit Satidjan visited the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial in Yerevan on 6 November. The delegation laid flowers at the Eternal Flame, honoured the memory of the victims of the Armenian Genocide and toured the museum-institute.

● Another cleric — priest Taron Unanyan — has been defrocked. Echmiadzin said the reasons include:– leaving his post without permission since May 2024;
– ignoring instructions from the acting head of the Tavush Diocese;
– taking part in a non-canonical ceremony with defrocked priest Stepan Asatryan;
– making public statements discrediting the Church;
– showing disrespect toward the supreme ecclesiastical authorities and violating his vow of obedience.

● Former President Serzh Sargsyan is facing criminal prosecution on charges of accepting a particularly large bribe, under Article 435 of Armenia’s Criminal Code.

● The Armenian Apostolic Church currently has no Catholicos of All Armenians, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said, reiterating his claim that Ktrich Nersisyan (Garegin II) “occupies the post illegally.”

“Why does no one ask whether Ktrich Nersisyan can serve as Catholicos if he has a child — a child born after he took a vow of celibacy? Ktrich Nersisyan is not the Catholicos of All Armenians,” Pashinyan said.

● The woman killed on Yeghishe Tadevosyan Street in Yerevan worked at the Ministry of Environment, where she was a senior legal officer. According to investigators, she was stabbed to death by her former husband during a domestic dispute.

● Georgia’s Prosecutor’s Office has launched criminal proceedings against eight prominent political figures — including jailed ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili, Giorgi Vashadze, Nika Gvaramia, Nika Melia, Zurab Japaridze, Elene Khoshtaria, as well as recently pardoned Lelo leaders Mamuka Khazaradze and Badri Japaridze.

Prosecutor General Giorgi Gvaramidze said that after the start of the war in Ukraine — when “the government chose a course of preserving peace and refused to impose sanctions on Russia” — several opposition figures allegedly provided foreign governments with information “on fuel imports, the state of the military sector,” and spread “false claims that Georgian airspace was used to transport Iranian drones to Russia.”

Investigators also claim the politicians supplied foreign partners with “lists of civil servants for sanctions,” which allegedly led to restrictions being imposed on around 300 Georgian nationals.

The prosecutor’s office says that after the 2024 elections, the same leaders “called for radicalizing protests, overthrowing the government, blocking state buildings and resisting law enforcement.” Prosecutors will seek bail for Khazaradze and Japaridze and request court dates for the others already in custody.

● Member of the European Parliament Rasa Juknevičienė condemned the move, writing on X:

“The Georgian Dream regime is lashing out in total desperation. Those facing these fabricated charges are heroes not only of Georgia but of all Europe!”

● On the evening of November 6, Rustaveli Avenue remained open for the first time in nearly a year of daily protests. Police formed cordons on both sides of the street to prevent demonstrators from blocking traffic. Clashes broke out between officers and protesters, and several people — including one minor — were detained.

● A group of U.S. senators and representatives has urged the State Department to protect former local U.S. employees in Georgia, accusing Georgian Dream of spreading dangerous allegations and fueling anti-American rhetoric.

“Georgian authorities claim they want to rebuild relations, but their actions say otherwise,” the lawmakers said in a joint statement.

The appeal follows remarks by Mamuka Mdinaradze, head of Georgia’s State Security Service, who accused Washington of trying to “organize a revolution” through payments to former USAID staff — payments that U.S. lawmakers say were standard compensation mandated by Georgian labor law.

The lawmakers called on Tbilisi to “publicly retract false statements,” warning that targeting local employees endangers U.S. operations abroad.

● Germany’s ambassador, Peter Fischer, has returned to Tbilisi after consultations in Berlin. Germany’s Foreign Office wrote on X that he would “continue his dedicated work in Tbilisi with our full support.”

Fischer was recalled several weeks earlier after Berlin said the Georgian government had “for months been campaigning against the EU, Germany, and the German ambassador personally.” Georgian Dream PM Irakli Kobakhidze welcomed the recall, calling Fischer’s criticism of the ruling party “harmful to bilateral relations.”

● Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze defended a bid to ban opposition parties as a measure to ‘protect democracy’.

“There is a criminal group and foreign agents in the country who are trying to overturn the constitutional order. A democratic system must defend itself,” he told reporters during a visit to Shanghai.

According to him, the bans are needed “to finally form a healthy democratic system.”

Earlier, Georgian Dream filed a case with the Constitutional Court seeking to outlaw three major opposition forces: the United National Movement, the Coalition for Change, and Strong Georgia (Lelo).

●  On 5 November, after Armenia and the EU held a ceremony to hand over the Visa Liberalisation Action Plan, Interior Minister Arpine Sargsyan and Johannes Luchner, Deputy Director-General for Migration at the European Commission, made public statements.

Luchner noted that Yerevan must now formally respond to the document, after which the EU will send expert missions to assess the situation on the ground.

Sargsyan called the moment “historic,” stressing that Armenia is the only country in the region engaged in a continuous visa-liberalisation dialogue with the EU.

●  The first shipment of Russian wheat delivered via Azerbaijan has arrived in Armenia, Economy Minister Gevorg Papoyan said.

Until now, grain was usually transported through Upper Lars on the Georgia–Russia border, where delays and disruptions were frequent. The new route used rail lines through Russia, Azerbaijan and Georgia.

●  Ruben Vardanyan, former state minister of the now-dissolved Nagorno-Karabakh administration and currently held in a Baku prison, was able to call his eldest son for the first time. His Telegram channel quoted him as saying: “Artsakh was, is and will be.”

●  The EU is ready to support the implementation of the peace understandings reached between Armenia and Azerbaijan at the leaders’ meeting in Washington in August 2025, EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus Toivo Klaar said at a meeting with Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov.

●  Armenia’s Security Council Secretary Armen Grigoryan took part in the 13th meeting of CIS Security Council Secretaries in Moscow. He said the CIS format remains an important platform for discussing security, connectivity and sustainable development.

While in Moscow, Grigoryan also met with Russia’s Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoigu. The two discussed regional security and the potential unlocked by reopening transport links.

●  “I think in January or February we’ll see very positive developments. First the border will open for citizens of third countries, and after that I hope Turkish and Armenian citizens will also be able to cross,” former Turkish MP Garo Paylan said.

●  Deputy Speaker of Parliament Ruben Rubinyan commented on OC Media’s investigation linking advocates of the “Western Azerbaijan” concept to the Azerbaijani presidential administration:

“After 8 August I haven’t noticed anyone using that term, and that is very good.”

●  The “Zangezur Corridor” and the North–South transport route do not compete with each other, Russia’s Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoigu said.

“Both routes are necessary—they ensure Azerbaijan’s transport connectivity and expand trade between countries,” he noted.

●  A court has ordered former Armenian Police Chief Vladimir Gasparyan to pay 35 million drams (about $90,000) to the state.

Gasparyan had earlier been charged with large-scale embezzlement and abuse of power.

●  Lawmakers have proposed declaring 27 January a “Day of Remembrance and Honour for Those Fallen in Defence of the Homeland,” to commemorate all servicemen killed in recent conflicts.

●  Opposition MP Taguhi Tovmasyan brought a pair of handcuffs to a parliamentary committee session and tried to present them to Investigative Committee chief Artur Poghosyan in protest at what she called a surge in politically motivated arrests.

“I don’t need a gift—especially this toy. I have real ones,” Poghosyan replied.

●  “Citizens of Armenia should live in Armenia, and citizens of Azerbaijan, I assume, should live in Azerbaijan,” Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said when asked about President Aliyev’s recent comments on “returning Azerbaijanis” to Armenia and calling Lake Sevan “Goycha.”

● Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze once again criticized the European Union, calling Brussels’ pressure “unjustified.”

“Georgia is a leader among candidate countries in terms of democracy, human rights, economic development, and low corruption. The European bureaucracy is in a tragic state… today its work has sunk to Soviet standards,” he said, adding that Georgia still aims to join the EU by 2030.

His comments came in response to a recent European Commission report highlighting a “sharp deterioration in democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights” in Georgia, warning that the country is “moving away from the European path.”

● Elene Khoshtaria, leader of the opposition party Droa, called the EU’s assessment “a historic event for Georgia and a shameful verdict for Georgian Dream, which has practically destroyed a century’s worth of progress.”

She warned that “Europe’s doors will not remain open forever” and said that securing Georgia’s European future requires “ending the Russian regime.” Khoshtaria was detained in September after writing “Russian Dream” on a campaign banner of the ruling party.

● Moscow, meanwhile, praised Georgian Dream once again.

“The Georgian authorities managed to resist destructive actions aimed at destabilizing the situation during the elections, and of course, we must acknowledge their resilience — they truly defended the interests of Georgia and the Georgian people,” said Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu.

● By order of Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Ilia II, Archimandrite Ilia Toloraya has been temporarily suspended from priestly duties. The Patriarchate said the decision was made following a recommendation from the diocesan commission over “slanderous remarks” against the church hierarchy. His right to serve will be restored only after “sincere repentance.”

Toloraya said the suspension was linked to his criticism of Metropolitan Shio, the Patriarch’s locum tenens. “Whose side are you on, Your Eminence? Russia’s or Georgia’s?” he asked in a televised comment.

● The Interior Ministry announced a nationwide operation targeting people connected to the criminal underworld. Thirty-four people were detained, while seven others — including suspects abroad and already in prison — were charged in absentia.

During the operation in the village of Kabali (eastern Georgia), 50-year-old Mirza Aliyev opened fire on special forces and was killed by return fire. A special forces officer was seriously wounded. Media later reported that Aliyev had served as a member of the Lagodekhi municipal assembly from 2010 to 2014.

Aliyev’s family denied any links to organized crime, saying he mistook masked officers for robbers when they entered his home without warning.

● Police also detained Mancho Giorgobiani, an active supporter of Georgian Dream, on charges of organizing and participating in group violence. The incident occurred three days ago. She faces up to nine years in prison.

●  Russian wheat is currently being transported to Armenia by rail through Azerbaijan, Economy Minister Gevorg Papoyan said on Facebook.

Earlier, both sides confirmed that Azerbaijan had allowed grain transit. The first shipment was coming from Kazakhstan.

●  The sister and brothers of three-year-old Tigran, who was killed by his father, have been temporarily placed in a Child Protection Center. The decision was confirmed by Mamikon Galoyan, a senior official in the Gegharkunik regional health and social services department.

Following reports that the child had been strangled by his father, the guardianship authorities held an emergency session and resolved to place the siblings under state care.

●  Around 75% of new apartment sales in Batumi are made to foreign buyers, according to a Galt & Taggart study cited by News-Georgia. Armenian citizens account for about 2% of those purchases.

●  Armenia’s first president Levon Ter-Petrosyan met with France’s ambassador to Armenia, Olivier Decottignies. During the hour-long meeting, Ter-Petrosyan shared his views on expanding Armenian-French cooperation, easing domestic political tensions, and ongoing regional developments.

●  The “Orbeli – 2025” international forum took place in Yerevan, organized by the Orbeli analytical center. Politicians, diplomats and experts from 15 countries took part, including participants from Azerbaijan and Turkey.

●  “In early 2026, the border between Turkey and Armenia will open to citizens.” The statement came from former Turkish MP of Armenian origin Garo Paylan at the “Orbeli 2025” forum. He said peace can be achieved through human contact rather than pressure:

“How can peace be achieved? Through pressure? They tried for 120 years. It didn’t work. People on both sides of the border don’t know each other and exchange rhetoric of hatred.”

●  “The Zangezur Corridor starts in Azerbaijan and ends in Turkey, and the TRIPP project is one of its components.” Azerbaijani political analyst Rusif Huseynov said at the “Orbeli 2025” forum in Yerevan.

“I don’t know whether ordinary Armenians like the term ‘Zangezur Corridor’ or not, but in the Azerbaijani concept it has a broader meaning,” he said, adding that Azerbaijan supports the route because it is “the shortest road.”

●  “Right now, the South Caucasus as a region doesn’t really exist, because the borders between countries are closed.” The remark was made by political analyst Alexander Iskandaryan at “Orbeli – 2025.”

He noted that from a U.S. perspective the South Caucasus may appear as a region, but for locals it does not function as one. He added that major changes have taken place over the last five years — including the 44-day war, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the exodus of Armenians from Karabakh.

●  On September 12, a Turkish delegation led by special representative Serdar Kılıç visited Armenia. Kılıç presented Deputy Foreign Minister Vahan Kostanyan with an ornate silver plate. According to 24news.am, Kostanyan transferred the gift to the Corruption Prevention Commission. It is valued at 101,228 drams (~$264). Armenian law requires officials to hand over gifts worth more than 60,000 drams to the state or local authorities.

●  EU monitors will remain in Armenia until a peace agreement with Azerbaijan is signed, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at “Orbeli – 2025.” He added that once the agreement is signed and ratified, the mission format will change, and Armenia will hold further consultations with European partners.

● A delegation from Armenia’s Military Police visited Georgia and met with Major General Shalva Shengelia, head of the Georgian Defense Ministry’s Military Police Department. The discussions focused on cooperation, exchanging experience, and strengthening partnership.

● The EU published its 2025 enlargement report, expressing “serious concern over the sharp deterioration of the situation in Georgia.” According to the document, the country has effectively halted its EU integration process and is showing backsliding on key democratic standards.

● EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos said that for Georgia, “its candidate status remains nominal,” citing a “rapid erosion of the rule of law and severe restrictions on fundamental rights.”

● Shalva Papuashvili, the “Georgian Dream” parliament speaker, responded by saying Brussels is experiencing an “erosion of values.” He accused the report of containing “false accusations, hostile rhetoric, and deliberate harm,” and said EU institutions display “arrogance toward states that do not show blind obedience.”

● Georgia’s Foreign Ministry said the critical assessment “did not come as a surprise” and called it “unfounded and politically motivated.” The ministry accused the EU of trying to influence domestic politics and of “using European integration as a political tool.”

● EU Ambassador to Georgia Paweł Herczyński reminded that at the end of December the European Commission will publish its report on visa liberalization, after which member states will decide whether to suspend visa-free travel for Georgia. The discussion, he noted, will take place “in light of the serious democratic backsliding” in the country.

● Poet Paata Shamugia was detained by police near parliament — reportedly on the same charge as other detained pro-European protesters: “artificially blocking Rustaveli Avenue.”

● Georgia’s fifth president, Salome Zurabishvili, joined protesters on Rustaveli Avenue, saying the blockade of the avenue will continue. According to her, demonstrators are protesting against “blocking a far more important path — the path that belongs to us.”

Zurabishvili stressed that the European Commission’s conclusions are “entirely the responsibility of the ruling party.” She said the backsliding began two years ago and was “deliberate, consistent, and carried out under Moscow’s direction.” According to her, “candidate status is effectively frozen due to the actions of the authorities,” whereas the EU “showed too much patience.”

● Georgia and China signed several cooperation memorandums in the fields of trade, agriculture, artificial intelligence, and the development of an “Air Silk Road.” A delegation led by Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze is in Shanghai for an international import expo and has already met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang.

● Armenia will continue purchasing weapons, while taking into account the U.S.-brokered understandings reached with Azerbaijan on August 8, Defense Minister Suren Papikyan said. The agreements are a significant factor and will have “their consequences,” he noted.

● After Azerbaijani civil society representatives visited Yerevan, an Armenian civil delegation is expected to make a reciprocal visit to Azerbaijan, Security Council Secretary Armen Grigoryan announced in Brussels at a conference organized by former NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen under the “Crossroads of Peace” initiative.

● Vice Speaker of Parliament Ruben Rubinyan responded to Ilham Aliyev’s comments about “historical Azerbaijani lands” and the claim that “there is no Lake Sevan, only Lake Goycha” — the Azerbaijani name for the lake. “There is no point in looking back. We must move forward — that is the essence of the August 8 Declaration,” he wrote.

● Parliament Speaker Alen Simonyan likewise addressed Aliyev’s remarks, saying they were aimed at a domestic audience and do not signal plans for “liberation of territories.”

● Donald Trump once again claimed credit for halting the war between Armenia and Azerbaijan. “I have a list of wars I stopped… Armenia and Azerbaijan… Israel and Hamas. I stopped eight out of nine wars,” he said.

● The father of a three-year-old boy whose body was found in Gegharkunik has been placed in pre-trial detention for two months, the Investigative Committee reported. According to the Interior Ministry, he strangled his son, who had been missing since October 27.

● Ambartsum Nersisyan, nephew of the Catholicos of All Armenians, has been arrested for one month. His father, Gevork, was detained the previous day on charges of hooliganism and obstructing election campaigning in Vagharshapat.

●Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has been nominated as the ruling Civil Contract party’s candidate for the 2026 parliamentary elections.

● Thirteen-year-old Tigran Ambartsumyan won the blitz title at the European Youth Chess Championship in Montenegro.

● Armenian customs officials seized around 0.5 kg of cocaine hidden inside pet mattresses in parcels sent from Spain, the State Revenue Committee said. Three suspects have been arrested and another placed under administrative supervision.

●  Today, the European Commission is publishing its annual report on EU enlargement.
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty has obtained details of the section concerning Georgia.

According to the Commission, the country shows a “significant backsliding” on nine of Brussels’ recommendations, which “further distances it from the European path.”

“Georgia has experienced a serious democratic regression, accompanied by rapid erosion of the rule of law and severe restrictions on fundamental rights… Laws targeting activists, civil society, and independent media jeopardize the foundations of democracy,” the report states.

●  European Commission spokesperson Anita Hipper called on the Georgian authorities to halt repression against peaceful protesters. She emphasized that the EU condemns violence and urges the government to return to dialogue with society.

●  The Tbilisi City Court has kept opposition politician Elene Khoshtaria in custody. She was detained in September for writing on the mayor Kakha Kaladze’s election poster.

She is charged with “damaging another person’s property,” which carries a sentence of up to five years in prison. Khoshtaria made the inscription after a student had been detained for a similar act during a protest outside Kaladze’s campaign headquarters.

●  Meanwhile, Kakha Kaladze announced plans to hold weekly meetings with city residents. “This will allow me to communicate with people directly, so that no citizen’s opinion goes unheard,” he said.

Details on how citizens can register for the meetings have not yet been provided. Kaladze recently began his third term, which part of the opposition has not recognized.

●  71-year-old regular protester Aza Chilachava was released from court after serving a one-day administrative detention.

“I will not obey this law. I know that tomorrow, when I join the protest, I will face criminal charges,” she said after her release. This was her second arrest in two weeks; she was previously detained for wearing a medical mask near the parliament, where anti-government protests have been ongoing for more than 240 days.

After the ruling Georgian Dream party imposed restrictions on freedom of expression in late October, police have detained dozens of protesters. Under the new regulations, blocking a road is punished with administrative detention with no alternative fine, and courts issue rulings almost daily. Repeated offenses within a year lead to criminal liability.

●  Yesterday, police detained journalist Ninia Kakobadze, reportedly for “blocking road”

●   The court sentenced the family members of photographer Guram Tsibakhashvili — his wife Manana Javashvili and children Giga and Lado — to administrative detention for blocking Rustaveli Avenue. Manana received one day, while Giga and Lado received eight days each.

●  The Penitentiary Service commented on the case of Anastasia Zinovkina, a Russian national detained during a pro-European protest and accused of drug-related offenses. The agency stated that reports of her deteriorating health and poor detention conditions “do not correspond to reality.” Earlier media reports said that Anastasia had complained about spinal problems and lack of proper medical care in prison.

●  The government transferred land plots and buildings in Tianeti and Senaki, totaling 5,603 sq. m, to the Georgian Orthodox Church through a direct purchase procedure. The order was signed by Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze of the Georgian Dream party on October 28.

●  Russian Security Council Deputy Secretary Alexey Shevtsov stated that BRICS, CIS, and CSTO countries share Russia’s commitment to protecting “traditional spiritual and moral values,” mentioning Georgia among like-minded states.

●  19-year-old British citizen Bella Mae Cally, accused of a drug-related offense and eight months pregnant, was released from the Tbilisi City Court following a plea agreement.
She fully admitted her guilt. The court sentenced her to 5 months and 24 days in prison and fined her 500,000 GEL. The sentence was counted as already served — Cally had been held in Women’s Prison No. 5 in Rustavi during this period.

Her family had pre-paid the £140,000 required under the agreement.

Cally was detained in May after arriving from Thailand with approximately 12 kg of marijuana and 2 kg of hashish in her luggage. She claimed she agreed to transport the drugs under duress after being held by a criminal group in Thailand.

● Of the 30 university students injured in a bus accident near the Haghartsin Monastery, 20 have now been discharged. Six were transferred from Tavush to hospitals in Yerevan. One student remains in a stable but serious condition after undergoing surgery and is under medical supervision.

The students were traveling to Dilijan on an educational trip organized by the student council of Brusov University.

● The brother and nephew of the Catholicos of All Armenians have been detained following a complaint filed by Echmiadzin mayoral candidate and “Republic” party member Arutyun Mkrtchyan. He accuses Geworg and Ambartsum Nersisyan of hooliganism and obstructing his campaign activities.

Attorney Ara Zohrabyan rejected the allegations as baseless and released CCTV footage as evidence.

● Three-year-old Tigran Hovhannisyan, who went missing nearly a week ago in Tsapatagh village in Gegharkunik province, has been found dead near the neighboring village of Chil. The child had been playing with his older brother, who returned home alone.

● President Vahagn Khachaturyan attended the opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum — the world’s largest archaeological museum, with up to 100,000 artifacts, including previously unseen treasures from the tomb of Tutankhamun. Delegations from 80 countries took part in the ceremony.

● Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan again attended a liturgy led by defrocked cleric Stepan Asatryan. Levon Zurabyan, deputy chairman of the opposition ANC party, said the government had “tried to use a popular movement to pressure the Church, but the propaganda campaign has failed.”

● The Skevra reliquary containing relics of more than 18 saints has been brought to the Mother See of Etchmiadzin.

● A poetic performance by French choreographer Yoann Bourgeois, titled Attempts to Reach a Point of Suspension, took place in Yerevan as part of the International Festival of Performing Arts. On a stage where bodies tilt, freeze, fall and rise again, Bourgeois explores the space between physics and philosophy. His “point of suspension” symbolizes the human soul in search of balance.

●  A hunger strike by opposition figures outside Parliament has entered its second week. Among the six participants are Gedevan Popkhadze, leader of the Coalition for Change, and Darejan Tskhvitariya of the United National Movement. They are demanding the release of “political prisoners” and the scheduling of new parliamentary elections.

●  Reporters Without Borders has placed Georgia’s shadow leader, billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, on its list of 34 “predators of press freedom” — alongside Vladimir Putin, Alexander Lukashenko, Ilham Aliyev and Nicolás Maduro.

The report notes that despite officially withdrawing from politics, Ivanishvili continues to wield decisive influence, while independent journalists face pressure and harassment.

●  Foreign Minister Maka Bochorishvili defended the decision of Georgia’s parliamentary delegation to refuse participation in the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly. She argued the platform has turned into a “tool of pressure”:

“Euronest is not a meeting of homeroom teachers instructing neighboring countries on how to conduct domestic policy… No one can dictate the path of development to the Georgian people.”

Earlier, Euronest adopted a resolution citing a “serious democratic backsliding” in Georgia, “rigged elections,” and pressure on media and NGOs.

●  The Interior Ministry confirmed Goga Memanishvili’s appointment as head of the Tbilisi Patrol Police Department. He replaces Lasha Jokhadze, who resigned on October 28.

●  Georgia’s fifth president, Salome Zurabishvili, sharply criticized new amendments to the civil service law, which restrict civil servants from taking secondary employment (including teaching) without written approval from their superiors:

“This is not one specific Russian-style law — it is a copy of the entire Russian model, aimed at changing the very nature of the Georgian state.”

She said the changes lead to full political control of the civil service and undermine academic freedom.

●  A march titled “Mothers for Freedom” took place in Tbilisi. Participants carried Georgian and EU flags and banners reading: “Russian Dream destroys the future” (a play on the ruling party’s name), “Fight for your children,” and “Our children deserve quality education.” Protesters demanded fair new elections and the release of those detained during demonstrations.

●  Yesterday, Ppolice detained at least three participants of the ongoing protest outside Parliament. Witnesses say the detentions followed an attempt to block the road — a symbolic action protesters have carried out every evening for more than 340 days.

Among those detained is 71-year-old Aza Chilachava (pictured), who had previously faced administrative charges for protest activity. On October 22, a court accused her of covering her face with a mask — an offense that, under new rules introduced by Georgian Dream, carries administrative arrest. She received only a verbal warning at the time. Her repeat detention now means she could face real jail time.

●  According to the Interior Ministry, 29 protesters have been detained over the past five days for violating assembly rules and illegally blocking Rustaveli Avenue.

●  The 2025 John Aubuchon Press Freedom Award from the National Press Club will be presented to nine imprisoned Azerbaijani journalists who worked on programs of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM). Among them is Farid Mekhralizade, a journalist and economist from Radio Liberty. He was charged with smuggling and other economic crimes and sentenced to nine years in a criminal case against the investigative outlet AbzasMedia, known for its anti-corruption reporting. Mekhralizade and other journalists arrested in this case deny the accusations, saying they are being punished for their investigative and essential public-interest work.

The National Press Club’s Board of Directors stated that the award aims to draw attention to the U.S. government’s failure to protect journalists imprisoned for advancing the principles of free speech. “Their arrest should outrage anyone who believes in America’s commitment to freedom,” said Club President Mike Balsamo.

USAGM previously funded independent media abroad and was shut down in March this year as part of Donald Trump’s order to cut funding for seven government agencies to optimize budget spending.

●  The investigation has been completed in the criminal case against a group of former leaders of the former unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (“NKR”). They are accused of war crimes, terrorism, attempts to overthrow state power, and other serious offenses. These charges carry sentences of up to 20 years in prison or life imprisonment. The state agency AZERTAC reported that on October 31, a judge of the Baku Military Court announced the end of the process. Today, November 3, a court hearing will take place where prosecutors will present their sentencing recommendations.

●  “The global community will witness cooperation among states across the territories from the Caspian to the Mediterranean,” said U.S. Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy for Syria Thomas Barrack, speaking at the International Institute for Strategic Studies forum in Bahrain. “U.S. President Donald Trump has reshaped the balance of power on the world’s geopolitical chessboard,” he said.

●  Member states of the Organization of Turkic States are exploring the possibility of launching tourist trains between their countries and beyond. A special working group has been established including representatives of railway administrations and tourism agencies. In July 2025, member states signed a Memorandum of Understanding on tourism cooperation in Ankara. The share of tourists from OTS countries in Azerbaijan’s total tourism flow is 24.9%.

●  Azerbaijan and Ukraine signed an updated agreement on cooperation in healthcare and medical science following the visit of a Ukrainian delegation to Baku led by the Minister of Health.

●  Presidential aide Hikmet Hajiyev posted on X a photo of completed railway tracks (see below) that will become part of the “Trump Route” — from Azerbaijan to its Nakhchivan exclave through Armenia. The opening of this route was agreed during the historic meeting of the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia in Washington on August 8 with the participation of Donald Trump. “Zangezur Corridor,” Hajiyev captioned the photo.

●  Azerbaijan’s Consul General in Georgia, Fuad Azizov, announced that Batumi will host a series of ceremonial events on November 8 — officially marked as Azerbaijan’s Victory Day in the 2020 Second Karabakh War. Members of the government of Georgia’s Adjara region, executives and employees of the state oil and gas company SOCAR, staff of the Kulevi oil terminal, and representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in Batumi will take part.

●  Azerbaijan reports a significant increase in olive production. Domestic market demand will be fully met, and export opportunities will also expand, said Agriculture Minister Majnun Mammadov.

●  Azerbaijani judoka Kenan Nasibov (+100 kg) won gold at the European U-23 Judo Championship held in Chisinau, Moldova. In the final, he defeated Polish athlete Jakub Sordyl. The day before, Azerbaijani judoka Islam Rahimov (66 kg) also won gold at the European Championship.

Top stories in Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia from 27-31 October, 2025