Armenia’s new cabinet to ‘reboot reforms’ as Pashinyan admits progress has stalled

Armenia’s new cabinet will aim to “reset and restart” democratic reforms, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Wednesday.

“For me as prime minister, one of the most alarming things is that we have reached a certain stage of stagnation in anti-corruption policy, including in international rankings,” Pashinyan said at an event titled the Armenian Platform for European Prosecutors’ Dialogue held in Yerevan, according to state news agency Armenpress. 

He described the situation as unacceptable, stressing that it is essential for the government to demonstrate consistent and principled progress in anti-corruption efforts. According to Pashinyan, the new government and parliamentary majority view the process of rebooting or renewing the entire package of democratic reforms as a priority.

The prime minister also addressed systemic problems in the judiciary, arguing that justice in Armenia is effectively accessible only to elites.

“It is only available to those who have money, connections, or influence that remains out of public view,” Pashinyan argued. He described this as a fundamental issue that must be resolved, adding that if justice is available only to elites, then it effectively does not exist.

According to Transparency International’s annual Corruption Perceptions Index, Armenia’s progress has stagnated in recent years following a sharp improvement after the 2018 revolution. The country’s score rose from 35 out of 100 in 2018 to 49 in 2021, before slipping to 46 last year, in a system where a higher score indicates lower perceived corruption.

Pashinyan has repeatedly criticized this stagnation, most notably during a major government reshuffle in November 2024, when he replaced several senior officials responsible for justice and law enforcement, accusing them of inefficiency despite having received all requested public funding increases.

“Four years ago, I said that those accused of corruption were spending their days partying in restaurants, and I’m repeating the same today. The public expects them to be held accountable, yet those who once looked down on others still continue to do so!” the prime minister said in 2024.