EVN Report

There is something very few people know about me. It’s something I’ve never spoken about publicly. But readers have told me how much they appreciate that, with every article, I give a little piece of myself. So today, I’m trusting you with something especially vulnerable and sharing a deeply personal part of my story, in the hope that it might help someone else reading this feel less alone. Twelve years ago, I went to rehab. I don’t like to talk about it.

In EVN Report’s news roundup for the week of July 3: The European Union announces tariff-free regime for 80% of Armenian exports; Armenia and Iran launch construction on the Kajaran tunnel, a key component of the North-South Highway; Armenia’s Government approves a $650 million public investment package for three major infrastructure projects and more.

Listen to the AI generated audio article. Your browser does not support the audio element. When Azerbaijan launched the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War in 2020, Armenia had no meaningful drone fleet. It had a handful of reconnaissance aircraft, virtually no loitering munitions, and a military leadership that had dismissed the threat posed by Azerbaijan’s drones, despite the lessons of the April 2016 Four-Day War.

Listen to the AI generated audio article. Your browser does not support the audio element. The 2026 Armenian Parliamentary elections were perhaps the most competitive and electorally complex in Armenia’s post-independence history, as the electorate demonstrated pluralistic aspirations, pocketbook voting, and narrowing of the urban-rural divide.

Հայաստանի և Ադրբեջանի անկլավների ծագմանը, իրավական կարգավիճակին, միջազգային զուգահեռներին և խաղաղության գործընթացի շրջանակներում քննարկվող հնարավոր տարբերակներին անդրադարձող հոդվածի ՁայնաԳիրը:

Yerevan has a habit of reinventing itself in the summer. By now, you’ve likely seen the stretch of pavement in downtown Yerevan painted in the form of a traditional Armenian rug. The crosswalk stopped people in their tracks and images quickly caught fire online, met largely with excitement and praise. It’s a small thing, as far as civic gestures go—a few cans of paint, a patch of asphalt.

Ahead of Armenia’s parliamentary elections, political forces are placing domestic concerns at the center of their campaigns. In this primer, Hranoush Dermoyan examines competing visions on the economy, education, healthcare, governance, agriculture and social policy, revealing how different forces seek to address Armenia’s socioeconomic challenges. Read more

For a landlocked country, Armenia makes a convincing case for a beach getaway, and much of it is made at Lake Sevan. With strong winds, crisp clear waters, and high elevation, it’s hardly suitable for casual tanning. Instead, Lake Sevan demands to be met on its own terms; its raw, stubborn character is exactly where its beauty lies. Sitting at nearly 1,900 meters above sea level, Lake Sevan isn’t the first place that comes to mind for yachting, but that’s becoming part of its appeal.

In EVN Report’s news roundup for the week of June 22: the Constitutional Court hears challenges to the results of the June 7 parliamentary election; Russia intensifies economic pressure as Armenia pushes to diversify exports; government moves closer to nationalizing Electric Networks of Armenia and more.

I enter a cafe in downtown Yerevan and witness a familiar scene: curtains pulled open, beige walls, uncomfortable-but-trendy stools. The menu runs from orange juice-espresso “bumble” coffee to poke bowls and salmon avocado toast. Some places offer experimental versions of traditional dishes we all love—deconstructed dolma with apricot, or sujuk where it doesn’t usually belong.