Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has stated that the Republic of Armenia must play a decisive role in the selection of the Catholicos of All Armenians. He expressed this opinion in a Facebook post.

“The Republic of Armenia must have a decisive voice in the election of the Catholicos of All Armenians. Candidates for Catholicos must undergo integrity checks.

This issue must be resolved once and for all,” he wrote.

Pashinyan’s statement comes in the context of ongoing tensions with the clergy, who criticized his remarks during a government meeting where he likened churches to storage rooms. In response, Pashinyan posted a series of Facebook messages containing offensive remarks directed at clergy. His wife, Anna Hakobyan, also joined the exchange with similarly inflammatory posts, calling clergymen “the country’s chief pedophiles.”