Samvel Karapetyan pledges 'realistic' path to strong Armenia

Armenian businessman and philanthropist Samvel Karapetyan,  who is being held in detention, has been named the prime ministerial candidate of the newly formed Strong Armenia party.

The party’s official presentation took place at the Karen Demirchyan Sports and Concerts Complex in Yerevan on Thursday, when an AI-generated video featured Karapetyan declaring his candidacy. “To restore our honor, unity and dignified life, I proudly announce my candidacy for the post of Armenian prime minister,” he said.

Karapetyan stated the country’s political situation had “fundamentally changed” and accused the government of failing in foreign and domestic policy. “The people are dissatisfied, the majority of society is finally disillusioned,” he said, adding: “We are poor and stuck in debt.”

He criticized false promises of peace, arguing that “peace without a strong state means surrender.” He rejected claims that building a strong army meant war, calling it “another lie to frighten the public.” Instead, he pledged to pursue “strong and dignified peace.”

Karapetyan also accused officials of misusing state funds. “One cannot drain the state budget and fill one’s own pockets – the opposite must be done,” he said. He promised that his party’s program would be “the most realistic and the best” and would “open a wide road toward a strong Armenia.”