Armenia’s State-Church Clash: Archbishops Jailed Over Coup Plot

A dramatic escalation in the long-simmering tensions between Armenia’s government and its ancient Apostolic Church has seen two high-ranking archbishops arrested on charges of plotting a coup. The move signals a new, more aggressive phase in Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s confrontation with the influential religious institution, which has become a focal point for political opposition.

The detained clergymen, Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan and Archbishop Mikael Adjapahyan, have been prominent and vocal critics of Pashinyan’s government for over a year, openly calling for his ouster. In a defiant statement, Pashinyan dismissed the notion of a political conflict, asserting that the church’s problems were not with his government but “with God.” He further warned that clergy, by their actions, had come under the “operational attention” of the National Security Service, which reports directly to him.

Archbishop Galstanyan is the founder of the anti-government movement “Sacred Struggle,” while Archbishop Adjapahyan is one of his closest allies. While Galstanyan’s arrest proceeded without significant public unrest, the detention of Adjapahyan proved more contentious. Hundreds of his supporters gathered at Etchmiadzin, the spiritual and administrative heart of the Armenian Apostolic Church, attempting to prevent security forces from taking him into custody. He later surrendered to the Investigative Committee.

The parliamentary opposition attempted to capitalize on the moment, proposing the detained Archbishop Adjapahyan as a candidate for prime minister, an offer he declined. The Church itself issued a sharp condemnation of his arrest, labeling it “political persecution in the classic sense” and a “personal vendetta.” In a statement, the Church leadership demanded Adjapahyan’s immediate release, calling the government’s actions an “unprecedented, shameful assault” on Armenia’s spiritual center. Notably, the official church statement made no mention of the other detained cleric, Archbishop Galstanyan.

Analysts suggest the crackdown is a preemptive strike by Pashinyan to consolidate power and neutralize potential leaders of public dissent ahead of controversial political decisions. According to Hrant Mikaelyan of the Caucasus Institute, the coup allegations may be a pretext for a broader purge of the opposition. He warns that Pashinyan’s next target could be the head of the church, Catholicos Karekin II, as the government prepares for a potential peace agreement with Azerbaijan and Turkey. Such a deal, possibly involving the sensitive issue of the Zangezur corridor, is expected to face significant public backlash, making a silenced opposition crucial for the government.