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

●  A group of activists attempted to hold a protest in Baku over the mysterious death of 18-year-old Elgun Ibrahimov in Ganja. The protest was dispersed by police. According to the activists, 63 people were detained, many of whom were subjected to violence, abuse, and threats while in custody.

●  At a court hearing on June 2, following the completion of an investigation, formal charges were filed against four more journalists and activists detained in the so-called “ToplumTV case”: journalist Mushfig Jabbbarov, Institute for Democratic Initiatives staff members Ali Zeynalli and Ramil Babayev, and the founder of the Third Republic Platform, Ruslan Izzetli.

The charges include smuggling, money laundering on a large scale, illegal entrepreneurship, tax evasion, hiring employees without official contracts, and more.

Previously, the same charges had been brought against two others in the case: ToplumTV founder and media law expert Alesker Mamedli, and Akif Gurbanov, head of the Institute for Democratic Initiatives and spokesperson for the Third Republic Platform.

All of the accused deny the allegations and say they are being persecuted for their professional and civic activities.

The charges carry a potential sentence of up to 12 years in prison under Azerbaijan’s criminal code. Charges against three more defendants — journalists Farid Ismayilov, Elmir Abbasov, and Ilkin Amrakhov — are scheduled to be formally presented at the next court session on June 23.

Since November 2023, over 30 journalists and civic activists have been arrested in Azerbaijan on group smuggling charges.

●  From June 2 to 4, Baku is hosting the 30th International Conference of Baku Energy Week, with representatives from 267 companies across 39 countries in attendance.

Discussions are focusing on global and regional energy challenges, new opportunities, and long-term prospects in the sector.

●  Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan sent a message to participants of Baku Energy Week, stressing the strategic importance of Turkey and Azerbaijan in ensuring Europe’s energy security. He recalled several major infrastructure projects: the Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan oil pipeline, the Baku–Tbilisi–Erzurum gas pipeline, the Trans-Anatolian Gas Pipeline (TANAP), and the Igdir–Nakhchivan gas pipeline.

Erdoğan also noted that in April, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Bulgaria signed a memorandum of understanding to establish a “green energy corridor.” “We now have a major opportunity to deepen this cooperation — particularly through the export of Turkmen gas via Azerbaijan and Turkey in a way that benefits all parties,” he said.

●  Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov is currently on an official visit to Kenya. He is expected to take part today in the opening ceremony of Azerbaijan’s embassy in the country.

● The trial of several former leaders of the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic continues. They face charges including war crimes, terrorism, attempts to overthrow the government, and other serious offenses.

According to the state-run AZERTAC news agency, the latest hearing presented detailed records and expert reports on civilian casualties and damage to Azerbaijan’s civilian infrastructure during the 44-day war in 2020. The next hearing is scheduled for June 5.

●  The Russian sports channel “Match TV” has been taken off the air in Azerbaijan due to its lack of a local broadcasting license. Local media report that Match TV had been operating in Azerbaijan since 2015.

● The ruling party Georgian Dream has filed complaints against opposition TV channels — TV Pirveli, Formula, and Mtavari Arkhi — for using terms such as “oligarch,” “Ivanishvili regime,” “political prisoners,” “illegitimate parliament,” “Russification,” “judicial clan,” and “repressions.” The Communications Commission now accuses the broadcasters of violating provisions of the amended Law on Broadcasting.

● “What’s next?” wrote TV Pirveli’s news director Nodar Meladze on Facebook.
“1. A warning
2. A fine
3. Being taken off the air.”

Meladze also said Georgian Dream is pressuring the advertising market: “Many companies have stopped advertising with us. One major Georgian brand terminated its contract months before it was due to expire on December 31. This is clear evidence of pressure. With our audience growing and ratings at an all-time high, why would advertisers suddenly pull out?”

***The amendments to the broadcasting law were passed in April, alongside other legislative initiatives widely viewed by the opposition, civil society, and international observers as part of Georgian Dream’s campaign to stifle dissent.

The new rules ban broadcasters from receiving foreign funding — even in the form of social advertising — and impose content standards for programming, websites, and social media. The Communications Commission now has sweeping powers to sanction perceived violations.

● “It’s obvious why Ivanishvili’s Georgian Dream is going after critical media — they don’t want people hearing the truth about what’s happening in Georgia and beyond,” said Eka Gigauri, Executive Director of Transparency International Georgia. “Their version of ‘neutrality’ means ‘stay silent.’”

● Meanwhile, Mediachecker reports that the Communications Commission has permitted Season TV to broadcast in Russian in addition to Georgian. The channel is fully owned by businessman Giorgi Kandelaki, known for making public statements in support of Stalin.

● Deputy Interior Minister Ioseb Chelidze has resigned, according to the ministry’s press office, cited by Mtavari. No reason was provided. His resignation comes just days after Interior Minister Vakhtang Gomelauri unexpectedly stepped down, citing a desire to spend more time with his family.

● Lithuania’s Foreign Ministry has condemned the arrest of opposition leader Nika Melia from the Coalition for Change and called on Georgian Dream to “cease the ongoing crackdown against civil society and opposition in Georgia”. “Our solidarity goes to the Georgian people standing for European values,” the ministry said in a statement on X.

Melia was arrested for refusing to appear before a parliamentary commission established by the ruling party to investigate alleged crimes by the former government.

● Two protestors, 26-year-old Guram Khutashvili and 23-year-old Daniel Mumladze, have been sentenced to three years in prison for damaging surveillance cameras during a protest in Tbilisi. According to their lawyers, both men pleaded guilty under a procedural agreement, expecting a suspended sentence. However, the prosecution reportedly reneged, and they only learned of the prison terms at the court hearing.

●  Georgia is experiencing a demographic decline: deaths now outnumber births. In 2014, around 60,000 children were born. By 2024, that figure had dropped by 20,517. The birth rate continues to fall by approximately 2,000 children each year.

●The Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin has condemned the Prime Minister’s remarks about the clergy, calling them “yet another campaign against the Armenian Apostolic Church” and urging “competent state authorities to put an end to the Prime Minister’s unlawful policy.”

“The use of vulgar language in public statements violates fundamental human rights… The Prime Minister’s behavior is fraught with destructive consequences and poses a threat to Armenian statehood… In many ways, such rhetoric echoes the anti-Armenian narratives and accusations spread by Azerbaijani propaganda,” the Church’s statement reads.

Previously, Nikol Pashinyan published a highly critical — and at times profane — series of posts on social media targeting Armenian clergy. He also argued that Armenia should have a decisive say in electing the Catholicos of All Armenians, with candidates undergoing integrity checks.

● “Nikol has crossed the red line!” — a protest demanding the Prime Minister’s resignation and expressing support for the Church was held outside the Government Building in Yerevan.

● Vazgen Manukyan, the first Prime Minister of independent Armenia (1990–91), also condemned the “campaign against the Church.” “As a millennia-old spiritual institution, the Armenian Apostolic Church commands exceptional respect among the Armenian people.

The current authorities, having completely lost public support, are trying to dismantle every institution of credibility,” he said.

● A French consulate has opened in Goris.

● A group of individuals was arrested in Armenia for attempting to distribute 1.9 kg of

methamphetamine via social media, according to the Investigative Committee.

● Bribery and complicity in unlawful activities: two employees of the Shengavit district administration in Yerevan were arrested.

According to the Anti-Corruption Committee, the officials received over $1,500 from the owner of an entertainment center who had been evading taxes. The pretrial investigation has been completed; one official is in custody, while the other has been placed under house arrest.

● “We must help Armenia strengthen its security so that it has sufficient military capacity to defend its borders,” said French Senator Gilbert-Luc Devinaz at the 5th Armenia–France Decentralized Cooperation Conference.

● Deputy Foreign Minister Vahan Kostanyan: “Armenia is taking steps to prevent further escalation.”

● Armenia has banned the import of 213 tons of watermelons due to excessive nitrate levels, according to the Food Safety Inspection Authority.

● A plane carrying a group of deported Georgian nationals has arrived in Tbilisi from the U.S. The exact number is unknown, but footage from the scene shows at least two dozen people. The deportations come amid Donald Trump’s campaign pledge to expel millions of undocumented migrants. According to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as of November 2024, 833 Georgian citizens were on deportation lists.

●  On May 31, Georgia’s new Foreign Agents Registration Act took effect. Authorities claim it is modeled on the U.S. FARA, though critics say it mirrors Russian-style restrictions. Unlike the previous version, the new law applies to individuals as well as organizations and imposes penalties of up to five years in prison for non-compliance.

●  Georgian Dream’s PM Irakli Kobakhidze has vowed to fully enforce the law. “We’ve seen four attempts at foreign-funded revolutions in the last four years,” he said. “This law on transparency, which has no alternative, is our response to such threats.”

●  “Georgia’s Foreign Agents Registration Act marks a serious setback for the country’s democracy. Alongside recent laws on broadcasting and grants, it represents another aggressive action by the Georgian authorities to suppress dissent, restrict freedoms, and further shrink the space for activists, civil society, and independent media,” reads a joint statement by Joint Statement by High Representative/Vice-President Kaja Kallas and Commissioner Marta Kos. “The responsibility lies solely with the Georgian authorities.”

●  Norway’s foreign ministry echoed the EU’s concerns, calling the law “another serious setback for Georgian democracy.” In a post on X, it warned that “repressive measures threaten the survival of Georgia’s democratic foundations and its citizens’ future in a free and open society.”

●  “The Church has become a political actor — and that is a great loss,” said Georgia’s fifth president, Salome Zourabichvili. According to her, “Georgian Dream has managed to divide three key pillars of national unity: the Church, culture, and sport, by politicizing all of them”.

●  Another civil servant has reportedly lost her job for supporting pro-European protests. Nata Bolkvadze, a senior analyst in the customs risk department, says she was fired after being fined for attending demonstrations. She wrote on Facebook that “since May 2, the tax service updated its internal regulations to allow disciplinary action for virtually any reason.”

●  Khatia Gogoberidze, editor-in-chief of the media outlet Aprili, was fined 5,000 GEL (about $1,800) for allegedly blocking Tbilisi’s Rustaveli Avenue — the main site of ongoing pro-European protests now in their seventh month. Gogoberidze insists she was on the scene for professional reasons.

●  Former Interior Minister Vakhtang Gomelauri has been awarded the Order of Vakhtang Gorgasali, 1st Class — one of Georgia’s highest state honors. The award was presented during Police Day celebrations in Tbilisi. Gomelauri resigned unexpectedly on May 28, citing family reasons. He is under U.S., UK, and Baltic sanctions for the violent crackdown on peaceful protests in late 2024.

At the “Dry Bridge” street market in Tbilisi:

● Azadeh Rojhan, the leading rapporteur on political prisoners for the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), has called on the Azerbaijani authorities to urgently review the 18-year prison sentence handed down to ethnic researcher Igbal Abilov. The scholar was accused of high treason for alleged cooperation with Armenia and incitement of hatred. He strongly denies the charges and claims he is being politically persecuted. “These accusations stem from his professional academic exchanges with Armenian scholars. As a historian and ethnographer, Abilov conducted research on the history and culture of the Talysh minority. Academic freedom is protected under the right to freedom of expression, and researchers must be safeguarded from political interference,” Rojhan stated. She also called for the release of other individuals — human rights defenders and journalists — who have been arrested for exercising their right to freedom of expression. More details on Igbal Abilov’s case here

●“His prosecution appears to stem from professional academic exchanges with Armenian scholars. As a historian and ethnographer, Abilov conducted research on the history and culture of the Talysh minority. Academic freedom is protected under the right to freedom of expression, and researchers must be shielded from political interference,” Rojhan stated, also urging the release of other detainees — including human rights defenders and journalists — imprisoned for exercising free speech.

●  Hikmet Hajiyev, aide to the President of Azerbaijan, once again accused Armenia of “deliberately and extensively laying mines on Azerbaijani territories during the occupation.”

“Since 2020, nearly 400 Azerbaijani citizens have fallen victim to landmine explosions. In many cases, mines were planted with no military necessity — purely to harm civilians and to deliberately delay the safe return of internally displaced persons to their native lands. In this context, mines have effectively become weapons of mass destruction and pose a serious threat,” Hajiyev wrote on X.

●  Saleh Samedov, chair of the Council of Elders in the Imishli district, has been arrested after appearing at a May 9 Victory Day event with a Soviet flag and wearing the St. George’s ribbon — a symbol of the Russian Empire banned in many countries as an emblem of aggression.

●  Azerbaijan’s national mini-football team defeated Hungary in the final to win the World Championship, which was held in Baku (pictured below).

● Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is facing backlash over remarks perceived as attacks on the Armenian Apostolic Church. He first caused controversy by stating that “some churches have turned into storage closets,” adding: “You walk into a church and see garbage, someone’s old clothes, someone’s shoes… How long can we keep being so fake?” He later reportedly used vulgar language in reference to a bishop. Several media outlets and public figures are now calling for the Ethics Commission to review the Prime Minister’s comments.

●  “Give Childhood Back to Karabakh’s Children” — a protest under this slogan was held outside government villas in Yerevan on International Children’s Day. One of the protest signs read: “Judas, how many silver coins did you sell my children’s homeland for?” “June 1 is not a holiday in Armenia — it’s a reminder of how unprotected our children are and how incapable the state is of defending them. Anyone who failed to protect our children must resign,” said one of the demonstrators.

● In the meantime, Prime Minister Pashinyan marked his 50th birthday. He received congratulations from Russian President Vladimir Putin, and according to official reports, the two leaders held a phone conversation to discuss bilateral relations and the regional situation.

Top stories in Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia from 26-30 May, 2025