Archbishop’s Plea from Prison Highlights Tensions in Armenia
The Armenian Apostolic Church, one of Christianity’s oldest institutions, finds itself under growing pressure as legal actions mount against its leaders. In a significant development, Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, currently imprisoned, has reached out to the International Religious Freedom Summit in Washington, urging U.S. intervention.
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The Switzerland-based Christian Solidarity International (CSI) delivered Galstanyan’s letter, emphasizing the archbishop’s concerns over his country’s religious freedom. With the IRF Summit focusing on global religious restrictions, his message resonated with faith leaders, policy advocates, and NGOs in attendance.
CSI President John Eibner shared the archbishop’s words during a press conference in Yerevan, after visiting Galstanyan in jail with Swiss parliamentarian Erich Vontobel. The archbishop warned of an existential threat to the “Christian Armenian nation,” calling on former U.S. Ambassador Sam Brownback and IRF Summit participants to take notice.
Given Galstanyan’s outspoken opposition to Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, he highlighted efforts to diminish the church’s societal role, accusing Azerbaijan and Turkey of turning Armenia into a “vassal state.” He is one of several senior clerics detained, including Archbishop Mikael Ajapajyan, Archbishop Arshak Khachatryan, and Bishop Mkrtich Proshyan, all facing charges from surveillance to public defamation.
The Armenian government has leveled multiple accusations against these clerics, ranging from destabilizing the state to judicial obstruction. Among the charges against them is an alleged involvement in a 2018 incident where drugs were planted during a demonstration.
Galstanyan also condemned actions against the church’s supporters, including the nationalization of businesses, citing the case of Samvel Karapetyan.
The opposition stance was further supported by Vontobel, who discussed the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh with Galstanyan. Vontobel assured continued advocacy for Armenians displaced by Azerbaijan’s 2023 military actions, declaring, “The case of Nagorno Karabakh is not closed yet.”
Efforts to support the displaced Artsakh Armenians continue, as advocates call for global support to allow the 120,000 displaced individuals to return to their homeland, now under Azerbaijani control. A motion introduced by Vontobel in the Swiss government for mediation efforts with Azerbaijan was approved in March 2025.
In his letters, Galstanyan drew parallels between current governmental actions and Soviet-era repression, claiming that the detentions aim to silence dissent during a national crisis. He connected these events to the loss of Armenian sovereignty following the 2023 ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Rafael Ishkhanyan from the Armenian Center for Political Rights highlighted a 2025 church conference in Bern as a pivotal moment for the crackdown, which escalated after Catholicos Karekin II demanded the release of Armenian hostages.
Pope Leo XIV recently extended greetings to Catholicos Karekin II, reaffirming his leadership, as international Christian leaders express solidarity amidst the ongoing challenges.
This article was originally written by www.christianpost.com
