https://www.barevworld.media/en/ News from Armenia and Armenians around the world, explained. en https://www.barevworld.media/brand/barev-world-mark-512.pnghttps://www.barevworld.media/en/ Sat, 31 Oct 2026 08:30:00 GMT https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/bagarre-parlement-armenie-29-octobre/ https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/bagarre-parlement-armenie-29-octobre/ Sat, 31 Oct 2026 08:30:00 GMT Barev World newsroom Armenia A brawl broke out on 29 October in Armenia’s National Assembly in Yerevan during a speech by MP Taron Chakhoyan of the ruling Civil Contract party. From the rostrum he accused the opposition of corruption, then targeted the family of Narek Karapetyan, leader of the Strong Armenia faction. After an exchange of insults, MPs from both camps came to blows. Deputy Speaker Vahagn Aleksanyan threw a chair towards the opposition benches; bottles flew and Mr Chakhoyan poured water over opposition MP Garnik Davtyan. Speaker Ruben Rubinyan initially refused to suspend the sitting “so that everyone can see”, before a break of about one hour. Clashes continued in the corridors, where security staff stepped in. https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/cop17-erevan-accord-biodiversite/ https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/cop17-erevan-accord-biodiversite/ Sat, 31 Oct 2026 08:25:00 GMT Barev World newsroom World The UN biodiversity conference (COP17), held for nearly two weeks in Yerevan, ended on the morning of Saturday 31 October after an all-night negotiation. Nearly 200 countries adopted the key texts meant to put the 2022 global framework back on track; that framework aims to halt biodiversity loss by 2030, notably by protecting 30% of land and sea. The UN had warned that most of these targets would be missed without a change of course. Armenia’s Environment Minister Hambardzum Matevosyan, president of COP17, closed the proceedings. More than one billion dollars in pledges were announced, half of it from philanthropists. Countries also chose Quito, Ecuador, to host COP18 in 2028, by 55 votes to 53 for Panama. https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/constitution-referendum-pachinian-opposition/ https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/constitution-referendum-pachinian-opposition/ Sat, 31 Oct 2026 08:20:00 GMT Barev World newsroom Armenia Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan hardened his tone on 29 October over constitutional reform, which he links to signing a peace treaty with Azerbaijan. Baku demands that the future constitution no longer refer to the 1990 Declaration of Independence, which mentions reunification with Nagorno-Karabakh; Mr Pashinyan called that text “anti-state”. Putting a draft to a referendum requires a two-thirds vote in parliament, which Civil Contract has lacked since the June elections. The head of government spoke of “strong public pressure”, including rallies outside parliament, and then, if that fails, early elections. Both opposition blocs, Armenia and Strong Armenia, refuse to vote for a text that has still not been published. https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/route-trump-tripp-ratifiee-iran-inquiet/ https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/route-trump-tripp-ratifiee-iran-inquiet/ Sat, 31 Oct 2026 08:10:00 GMT Barev World newsroom Economy Armenia’s National Assembly on 28 October ratified, by 63 votes to 32 with no abstentions, the Armenian-American framework agreement on the “Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity” (TRIPP). The text provides for a transport link across Syunik province, connecting Azerbaijan to its Nakhichevan exclave, as well as railway, road, energy and communications infrastructure. A joint development company would be 74% owned by the United States and 26% by Armenia for an initial 49-year period; a 50-year extension would raise Armenia’s stake to 49%. Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan says the infrastructure will remain under Armenian sovereignty and jurisdiction, including customs and border security. https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/assurance-maladie-universelle-salaires-200000-drams/ https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/assurance-maladie-universelle-salaires-200000-drams/ Sat, 31 Oct 2026 08:00:00 GMT Barev World newsroom Economy Armenia’s government on 29 October approved bills extending universal health insurance, launched on 1 January 2026. From 1 January 2027, employees whose monthly salary does not exceed 200,000 drams will be covered. The premium of 10,800 drams a month will be split between the state (4,400 drams), the employer (4,400 drams) and the employee (2,000 drams). According to Health Minister Anahit Avanesyan, about 350,000 people are concerned. Employees will also be able to insure relatives voluntarily by paying their premium: one family member for those earning between 200,000 and 500,000 drams, two above that. Taxi drivers working through digital platforms may be included, subject to registration-history and turnover conditions. The bills still have to go before parliament. https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/passeports-biometriques-1er-novembre-haypass/ https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/passeports-biometriques-1er-novembre-haypass/ Sat, 31 Oct 2026 07:50:00 GMT Barev World newsroom Armenia Armenia starts issuing its new biometric passports and identity cards on 1 November, designed to European Union standards with the private partner HayPass, which works with France’s IN Groupe. On 31 October, Nikol Pashinyan attended the opening of the HayPass office at the Yerevan Mall shopping centre and submitted his own biometric data there. Interior Minister Arpine Sargsyan explains that applications will start online: a check against the population register, payment in advance, then a QR code sent by email. At the office, applicants will only need to give fingerprints and be photographed. Fourteen offices are planned in Yerevan and the ten provinces. The government also decided that the passport numbered 0000001 will be issued for a high extra fee. https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/aliev-absent-sommet-turcique-erdogan-paix/ https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/aliev-absent-sommet-turcique-erdogan-paix/ Sat, 31 Oct 2026 07:40:00 GMT Barev World newsroom World Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev did not attend the 13th summit of the Organization of Turkic States, held in Ankara on 30 October: it is the first time in almost fifteen years that he has missed an official summit of the organisation. Baku cited a busy schedule and was represented by Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov. The absence comes amid tensions between Baku and Ankara, notably after Turkish officials criticised the ban on headscarves in Azerbaijani schools. At the summit, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said he supports “our Azerbaijani brothers in their contacts with Armenia” and pledged to contribute “to lasting peace” in the South Caucasus. He also said he hoped renewed tensions around Iran would be resolved through diplomacy. https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/armenie-ue-liberalisation-visas-progres/ https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/armenie-ue-liberalisation-visas-progres/ Sat, 31 Oct 2026 07:30:00 GMT Barev World newsroom World Armenian Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan received a European Commission delegation in Yerevan on 30 October, led by Johannes Luchner, Deputy Director-General for Migration and Home Affairs. Interior Minister Arpine Sargsyan and the head of the EU Delegation to Armenia, Ambassador Vassilis Maragos, attended the meeting. Both sides noted progress in implementing the Visa Liberalisation Action Plan, which is ultimately meant to allow Armenian citizens to travel to the Schengen area without a visa for short stays. Talks covered migration management, preventing irregular migration, return and readmission procedures, and integrated border management. Mr Grigoryan described the process as a key avenue for expanding ties between Armenians and EU countries. https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/mondiaux-lutte-halterophilie-medailles-armeniennes/ https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/mondiaux-lutte-halterophilie-medailles-armeniennes/ Sat, 31 Oct 2026 07:20:00 GMT Barev World newsroom Sport A rich week for Armenian sport. At the World Wrestling Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan, Karen Aslanyan became Greco-Roman world champion at 63 kg on 27 October, beating Azerbaijan’s Nihat Mammadli 8–4 in the final. The same day, Gevorg Tadevosyan won bronze at 87 kg against Ukraine’s Yaroslav Filchakov. In freestyle, 27-year-old Vazgen Tevanyan took silver at 65 kg on 30 October: he lost the final 9–1 to 20-year-old American Bo Bassett after fracturing his little finger in the semi-final. In the quarter-final he had beaten Iran’s Rahman Amouzad, the reigning world champion. In weightlifting, at the World Championships in China, Alexandra Grigoryan won bronze in the clean and jerk (120 kg) at 57 kg, Armenia’s first medal of the event. https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/glendale-immersion-armenien-occidental-inscriptions/ https://www.barevworld.media/en/article/glendale-immersion-armenien-occidental-inscriptions/ Sat, 31 Oct 2026 07:10:00 GMT Barev World newsroom Culture The Glendale public school district in California opens applications on 1 November for its Western Armenian dual language immersion programme, described as the first of its kind in a US public school. The programme will welcome its first kindergarten class at Glenoaks Elementary School in the 2027–28 school year, then expand by one grade a year up to sixth grade. Pupils will spend half the day in Western Armenian and half in English, learning the language through subject content rather than as a separate class. The school board created the programme in January 2026, then unanimously chose Glenoaks in June. Admission is through the lottery shared by all the district’s dual language programmes.