Arrest of Archbishop Arshak Khachatryan continuation of process of  weakening position of Catholicos - expert 

ArmInfo. The arrest of Archbishop Arshak Khachatryan, head of the chancery of the Mother See of Etchmiadzin, before the December 10-12 bishops' meeting is a  continuation of the process to weaken the position of Catholicos of  All Armenians Garegin II. Political scientist Suren Surenyants wrote  about this on his Facebook page.

According to the political scientist, the charges brought against the  cleric bear all the hallmarks of a pattern that has been used for  years, and is characteristic of the police's habit of "planting drugs  in pockets." 

"According to the investigative body, back in 2018, the priest  attempted to discredit one of the participants in a protest against  Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II by placing drugs in his bag.  Legally, this is a weak, disproportionate, and destructive charge;  politically, it is an act of retaliation," the political scientist  believes.

Sureniants expressed his conviction that the arrest is an organic  continuation of a process aimed at establishing control over the  church elite. In this regard, he noted that, against this backdrop,  Brussels announced the allocation of 12 million euros to Armenia to  combat "foreign information manipulation and interference."  Furthermore, as Sureniants recalled, the EU Commissioner for  Enlargement Policy openly stated that Russia and its "proxies" are  activating their networks in Armenia using the same formula as in  Moldova. "This statement creates a new political environment in which  anti-Russian protests serve the purpose of legitimizing domestic  political repression. The Moldovan precedent demonstrates how a set  of measures aimed at neutralizing threats can become a tool for the  authoritarian reproduction of power. This manifests itself in  repression against opposition forces, media outlets, church  structures, and individuals enjoying public authority," the political  scientist explained.

According to Sureniants, in this context, the 12 million euros are  not technical support, but a political message to Prime Minister  Nikol Pashinyan's government about continuing repression. The  political scientist noted that it is in this context that Arshak  Khachatryan's arrest should be viewed-as an obvious provocation  carried out using "KGB methods" and not in line with the standards of  the rule of law.

"The pressure ring around Mother See of Etchmiadzin is dangerously  tightening. Armenia is entering a new phase of repression, where  national institutions and public authority become targets for the  reproduction of power," Sureniants concluded.

It should be noted that Archbishop Arshak Khachatryan, head of the  chancery of Mother See of Etchmiadzin, was previously arrested in  connection with a drug trafficking case. According to Archbishop  Arsen Babayan, his client was summoned to the Investigative Committee  to testify "in connection with the infamous video recording." After  questioning, they exited the main entrance of the Investigative  Committee, where they were met by SNB officers, who stated that they  had an investigator's warrant for the archbishop's arrest. It later  emerged that the archbishop is accused of planting drugs in the bag  of a protester against His Holiness in 2018, allegedly to discredit  him. A video allegedly depicting Archbishop Arshak with a woman had  previously been circulated on pro-government platforms. The video  quality is very poor, and only vague facial features are visible. The  source of the video is still unknown. The clergyman himself has  repeatedly emphasized that he has nothing to do with the video.