Vardevanyan: The creation of a commission to investigate the "crisis" in the AAC may be followed by legal proceedings.

ArmInfo. The creation of a commission to investigate the "crisis" in the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC) may be followed by legal proceedings. Vice Speaker of the Armenian Parliament Aram Vardevanyan stated this in a conversation with journalists on October 6.

He recalled that the National Assembly of Armenia cannot interfere in the activities of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, since such powers are not provided for by the Constitution of Armenia. "If the ruling Civil Contract faction's justification is that parliament passes laws, then, guided by the same logic, parliament could create, for example, a commission to evaluate judicial acts. However, this is impossible, since it would mean interfering in the activities of the judiciary of Armenia," Vardevanyan emphasized.

He recalled that the Strong Armenia faction has already stated its position regarding whether it intends to participate in the meetings of this Commission. "The question is that this decision may be followed by certain legal proceedings, since the creation of an investigative commission to investigate the 'crisis' in the Armenian Apostolic Church is unconstitutional. I note that Ruben Rubinyan, as Speaker of the Armenian Parliament, had an obligation to withdraw this proposal. After all, it is impossible to create any investigative commission. But he did not do so, meaning he essentially failed to fulfill his obligation," the Deputy Speaker of the Armenian Parliament noted.

According to Vardevanyan, from the perspective of national identity, the existence of this Commission is unacceptable. He noted that the report on the so-called crisis in the Armenian Apostolic Church does not contain a single piece of information backed by irrefutable facts. He added that the Armenian government is already committing violations that are ultimately becoming a topic of discussion beyond Armenia. In this regard, he recalled that he attended meetings of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and saw a foreign representative raise the issue of interference in the internal affairs of the Armenian Apostolic Church. "There, I witnessed how a Civil Contract MP tried to resist this and became the only MP to be interrupted," Vardevanyan summarized.

Let us recall that at the end of September 2026, the Prime Minister's Office published an official report on the "crisis in the Armenian Apostolic Church," containing accusations against the senior clergy and a reform plan that envisages the replacement of the Catholicos and the adoption of a new church charter. In October 2026, the Armenian Parliament, on the initiative of the ruling Civil Contract faction, created a special investigative commission to study the situation in the Church and develop legislative changes aimed at "stopping the takeover of the Church."

The Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin called the government's initiatives and report illegal, unconstitutional, and gross pressure on an autonomous religious organization. The Church insists that the state has no right to interfere in internal affairs and decide on the replacement of the Catholicos.

It should be added that at a parliamentary session on October 6, the opposition factions "Armenia" and "Strong Armenia" announced that they would not participate in the work of the investigative group created by the ruling faction "Civil Contract" to investigate the "crisis in the Church."