Latest from EVN Report
EVN Report
an hour ago
- Politics
- EVN Report
The U.S. Proposal, Sovereignty, and the State of Play
A U.S. proposal to lease a transit route through Armenian territory to connect Azerbaijan with Nakhichevan has sparked debate over sovereignty, security and regional power dynamics. Dr. Nerses Kopalyan offers expert insight into the implications and possible outcomes.
EVN Report
a day ago
- Business
- EVN Report
Marathon Press Conference, Issues of Connectivity and New Political Parties
In EVN Report's news roundup for the week of July 18: a U.S.-backed proposal to lease a 32-km stretch of Armenian territory linking Azerbaijan to Nakhichevan raises questions over sovereignty; PM Nikol Pashinyan holds a marathon press conference on regional connectivity, Armenia's EU path, the CSTO and more; and from detention, Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan announces plans to launch a new political party.
EVN Report
a day ago
- Politics
- EVN Report
Russia's Election Interference Playbook
Inside a modest building just off Arshakunyants Avenue in Yerevan, the Media Initiatives Center office, home to the newsroom, doesn't look like the front line of a digital battleground. There's a recording studio, a small library, and a handful of desks where journalists quietly sift through a flood of headlines, fact-checking posts in Armenian, English, and increasingly, Russian. At the helm of this effort is Gegham Vardanyan, a physicist-turned-journalist who has led the independent outlet for nearly two decades. These days, he and his team spend more time than usual on Telegram, monitoring channels that spread conspiracies about Armenia's government, warning of imminent war with Azerbaijan, or casting Russia as the country's only reliable ally. Russia's influence in Armenia is nothing new. For decades, Russian-language media dominated Armenian airwaves, Kremlin talking points circulated largely unchecked, and Moscow's political presence went unquestioned by many. But as Yerevan distances itself from Russia and inches closer to the West, Moscow's tone and tactics are beginning to shift. Ahead of Armenia's 2026 parliamentary elections, evidence is mounting of a more coordinated and aggressive effort to reassert Moscow's grip on the country. From high-level political appointments to disinformation campaigns, proxy organizations, and digital warfare, the Kremlin appears to be enhancing its playbook—one already deployed in Moldova and Romania—on Armenian ground. 'We have a decline of trust toward almost every institution in Armenia,' Vardanyan says. 'Russia tries to downgrade democracy everywhere…in Armenia as well.' Some Armenian officials are expecting foul play by Russia in their upcoming elections. In early May, the President of the Armenian National Assembly, Alen Simonyan, accused Russia of waging 'a hybrid war' against Armenia and that Moscow plans to increase its activity in the country in 2026. Maria Zakharova, spokesperson of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, called Simonyan's 'aggressive language' a cause for 'bewilderment.' But just one month prior, Sergei Kiriyenko , first deputy chief of staff of the Presidential Administration, was appointed by Russian President Vladimir Putin to 'deal with the topic of Armenia. ' According to Vedomosti , a Russian-language business daily newspaper, Kiriyenko's current agenda in Armenia is mostly informational but is expected to ramp up as the 2026 elections near. Kiriyenko is reportedly the same mind behind Russian influence in the elections in Moldova, Abkhazia (a statelet in Georgia recognized only by Russia), and South Ossetia (also a a breakaway region in Georgia backed by Russia). 'Maybe he will be responsible for the interference in the wider (region) including Armenia, which wouldn't be good news because he's very cynical and he's very resourceful,' says Valeriu Pasa, chair of , a think-tank in Moldova tackling Russian disinformation and influence in the country, among other topics. While Kiriyenko typically operates within the Kremlin's domestic policy sphere, his oversight of Armenia, Moldova, Abkhazia and South Ossetia points to a growing convergence between Russia's domestic and foreign political strategies, says Howard Amos, former editor-in-chief of the Moscow Times and freelance journalist who has covered Russia for over a decade. 'In some way, Russia clearly sees (these places) as their backyard,' Amos explains. 'That suggests that they don't see those countries so much as foreign policy. It's almost domestic policy, which again speaks about Putinism and Russian imperialism, how that's changed since the war in Ukraine.' The same month Kiriyenko was appointed, about 100 journalists from around the world, including Armenian journalists from , , and , gathered in Moscow for a forum hosted by Eurasia , a new Russian-backed nonprofit organization promoting a Eurasian ideology among former Soviet states, especially in countries where there is a growing divergence away from Russia. The Eurasia website lists Moldovan criminal fugitive and oligarch Ilan Shor as a patron, but on paper, Nelli Parutenco, former treasurer of Shor, is listed as the director. Shor is under European and American sanctions and was convicted in his home country for stealing $1 billion from three banks in 2014. Today, Shor lives in Russia and works as a proxy for Moscow's agenda, laundering money to procure weapons for the Russian army on international markets. One of the council members of this new organization is Mikael (Mika) Badalyan, an Armenian nationalist, pro-Russian blogger who often appears on Russian media and head of the opposition movement, Azatagrum ('Liberation'). Badalyan played a key role in bringing Armenian journalists to the Eurasia forum in Moscow, Vardanyan says, noting that some of the journalists in attendance later published articles promoting Russia's interests and initiatives in a favorable light. A prominent example was comments made by AlphaNews Editor-in-Chief Tigran Kocharyan that Russian initiatives in Armenia should be accompanied by appropriate media coverage. 'People in Armenia often receive information that everything is bad in Russia, there are sanctions, the people are starving and nothing is developing there,' he says, according to an article published on his website . 'And thanks to such initiatives (like Eurasia), Armenian youth come and see Moscow's electric buses, enter the metro, supermarkets, go out to Red Square, and understand that Russia has been able to suppress sanctions.' The leadership of the Eurasia group is also stacked with Russian government officials and pro-Russian proxies. The board of trustees includes Vyacheslav Volodin, chairman of the Russian State Duma, as head of the board; Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of RT (Russian state-owned television); Andrey Kondrashov, director general of TASS (another Russian state-owned news agency); Petr Mikhailovich Fradkov, chairman and CEO of Promsvyazbank (Russian state-owned bank); Shor, among others. The Council of Eurasia also features representatives from various former Soviet satellite states, including Armenia, Moldova, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan, implying a large outreach of operations. While Eurasia is beginning to exert influence in Armenia, the organization has already created a strong track record for itself in Moldova. During the 2024 presidential and EU referendum elections, Eurasia explicitly paid Moldovan voters to vote against joining the EU. Russia spent nearly $220 million to buy votes and rig Moldova's elections. Moldovan law enforcement later arrested around 130,000 people who were part of a vote-bribing scheme organized by exiled Russian oligarchs. Similar tactics were used in the 2023 Moldovan elections, including deepfakes, hack-and-leak operations, and financing campaigns to buy influence and votes. Authorities in Moldova report that the Kremlin allocated around $55 million toward destabilization efforts in the country in that year. Those efforts were pushed by Russian-backed parties and oligarch-owned media looking to polarize the country. 'The modus operandi of Russians is not ideology, as it was like communism,' Pasa notes. 'Even in communism, it wasn't just ideology. It is money.' Eurasia presents itself as a foundation with 'the declarative role of promoting the Eurasian Union and other propagandistic stamps like that,' Pasa explains. 'In reality, it's a need to manage, to interfere in foreign politics of Russia.' With concentrated efforts and attention in Moldova, their hatched plan was considered 'quite successful,' he continues. 'Even if they didn't have the full victory in the referendum and the elections, they obtained more than they expected, and they kept this polarization and division in (the society).' While some physical involvement is beginning to emerge out of Moscow into former states in Russia's orbit like Armenia, the attacks have flared up online via the dispersion of Russian propaganda on Telegram channels. An investigation by reveals at least 13 Telegram channels fueling pro-Kremlin stances on Armenian issues, including narratives that cooperation with the West is a danger to Armenia and will lead to its destruction; that Azerbaijan may launch a new war against Armenia and undermine its sovereignty; or that Russia is Armenia's only savior in case of future aggression from its neighbor to the East. Many of the posts describe Armenia's fate if it seeks closer ties to Europe, akin to Ukraine's current position. Others fuel conspiracies that Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's draw toward the West is a distraction from more pressing internal issues in the country. Local Armenians, although not direct proxies of the Kremlin, often play a role in regurgitating Russian talking points, pushing against a Western narrative. One of the main bloggers is Eurasia's Badalyan. He often shares pro-Russian messages and takes on his Telegram channel , including that Pashinyan is implementing 'the Turkish project' by suppressing all opposition sympathetic to Russia. He also posts in support of Samvel Karapetyan, a Russian-Armenian billionaire, who is under Ukrainian sanctions for suspected embezzlement of municipal property and for his company's, Tashir Holding, ties with the Moscow mayor's office, according to OpenSanctions . Karapetyan was recently arrested in Armenia for allegedly planning a coup . 'Fear and hatred of Samvel Karapetyan,' Badalyan writes in one of his posts . 'It is impossible to describe Pashinyan's attitude towards the respected businessman Samvel Karapetyan in any other way. Wherever images of Karapetyan appear in Armenia, they are almost immediately dismantled.' While Russia might not directly be manipulating the media, its propaganda machine is in full force and working in Moscow's benefit, Amos explained. 'It's not like someone, certainly the Kremlin, is sitting there giving an order to do this,' he says. 'It kind of just happened because the machinery's in place and they're used to doing it and they kind of know what or they anticipate or they think they know what Putin wants or whatever.' Digital disinformation was a key tool in Russia's subversion of Romania's 2024 presidential elections. During the campaign, Moscow capitalized on platforms like TikTok to propel a pro-Russian and far-right candidate, Călin Georgescu . In mid-September, Georgescu was not registering in opinion polls, with less than 1% of voters indicating support, explained Ioana Avadani, executive director of the Center for Independent Journalism in Bucharest, Romania. Yet, after the first round of voting, Georgescu's support soared to 23%, raising alarm bells. 'Everybody asked, 'How was it possible?'' Avadani recalls. 'People who understand how social media platforms work said it is not possible without manipulation. You cannot gain 20% organically in three weeks just because people suddenly like you. They assume that there was foul play.' Following this upset, Romania's Constitutional Court declared the elections were being manipulated and canceled them. Romania became the first EU and NATO member state to annul a presidential election as a result of evidence of massive external interference in the digital environment, explains Mihai Rotariu, communications expert at the Romanian National Cybersecurity Directorate . New elections in Romania were held in May 2025. Moscow attempted once more to deploy similar tactics to disrupt the country's democratic process. Hacking attacks were launched by pro-Russian groups on government websites, and Romanian authorities, with help from the European Union, opened special reporting channels with social media channels to combat illegal and false content from reaching the masses. 'Mainstream media or traditional media is rapidly losing ground to social media and influencers as well as losing the trust of the audience,' Rotariu continues. 'Romanians get most of their information these days from social media rather than TV or press. This is why social media platforms such as Meta, TikTok, Discord, or Telegram are weaponized to target youngsters but also marginalized groups.' Avadani describes the first interference attempt in Romania as a near success, 'not because they wanted Mr. Georgescu to be a president, but because they wanted us to lose trust in the electoral process. It was a very visible satisfaction.' Similar disinformation tactics were reported in Georgia's latest elections, where the conservative and populist party, Georgian Dream, stoked fears of war with Russia to win reelection last fall. 'You could make a sort of similar case in Armenia, that sort of bad relations with Russia could lead to war with Azerbaijan and people are tired of war, we want peace, etc.,' Amos explains. 'It's playing on what happened in Ukraine, isn't it? Like you piss off Russia and then you get a war.' Part of the issue with the rising prominence of social platforms in disseminating news is the lack of media literacy among the public, notes Nadine Gogu, director of the Independent Journalism Center (IJC) in Chisinau, Moldova. 'It is very important nowadays to help people understand how disinformation, manipulation are spread through social media and what a deepfake is, for instance, or how they should read the information, a special news report, when it comes to proper information,' Gogu says. In preparation for 2026, Armenia's Central Electoral Commission has been working to improve both its technical infrastructure and capacities to limit external interference in the electoral system. That includes regular training programs and exchanging experiences with representatives of electoral bodies of other countries and international organizations for the entire CEC staff, particularly the Information Technologies Analysis Department of the CEC, to 'ensure alignment with the evolving demands of the time.' 'The security environment of the 21st century has significantly changed, largely due to the rapid development of information technologies,' the CEC writes in a statement to EVN Report. Ahead of national elections, the CEC says it regularly organizes training sessions for stakeholders in the electoral process, including media partners. It also publishes a variety of guides and manuals for members (and candidates for membership) of electoral commissions, media representatives and observer organizations, political parties and their proxies on their rights and responsibilities. Domestic cybersecurity reforms have also been initiated in recent years as digital threats intensify. In April 2020, the Armenian government, in partnership with USAID, adopted a Digitalization Strategy that emphasizes innovative technologies, e-governance, and cybersecurity integration. However, with the dismantling of USAID by U.S. President Donald Trump, it is unclear whether this initiative will have any impact during the 2026 parliamentary elections. Armenia also established its first National Center for Information Security and Cryptography State Nonprofit Organization in March 2024 to develop information protection mechanisms and new software solutions. The government also partnered with nongovernmental organizations to create a strategy and action plan to combat disinformation through 2026. While the government has attempted to curb the spread of disinformation, the efforts are not sufficient or counter-productive, says Artur Papyan, director at the Media Diversity Institute and co-founder of CyberHub-AM . Instead, a lot of the fact-checking work has fallen to Armenia's civil society. There are several outlets that have taken up the task: Fact Investigation Platform, Hetq, Media Initiatives Center, CivilNet and the platforms Papyan runs, among others. 'We're a 30-year-old country,' Papyan says. 'We've grown up. We should take care of our own FIMI (Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference). The government is not doing enough, that's clear. But it should and it has some resources, so it should allocate that.' Sitting in his office at the Yerevan Press Club, Papyan experiments with AI for educational purposes. He shows how easy it is to create deepfakes of officials or how he was able to create a video just from a photo . He notes that a simple video where he superposes someone else's face on top of his own takes him just 15 minutes and that outside actors with more resources could replicate these false videos easier and faster than him. He also points to a government-backed fact-checking initiative launched during the 2020 war to combat disinformation called . However, the platform quickly turned into its own propaganda and disinformation outlet and was shut down. 'They were trying to do good or something, but they blew it,' Papyan explains. Unlike its counterparts, like Romania, which also suffered from Russian disinformation, Armenia is neither a member of the EU nor NATO, explains Vardanyan. That means any attempts to combat election disinformation and digital attacks will be more challenging. 'In Europe, it's easier because the EU (has) the Digital Service Act, which protects its citizens, and based on this Digital Service Act, they can push Meta or others to communicate and to cut, to just fire some suspicious activities and so on,' Vardanyan says. 'But in Armenia's case, it will be harder. This is a new challenge for our country to prepare for elections, to raise resilience and to protect our people from information interference.' While there are some early signs of Russian interest in Armenia, there is still some uncertainty about the extent to which Moscow will seek to actively influence the 2026 elections. As the war in Ukraine rages on for its third year, much of the Kremlin's resources and energy are focused on the conflict. 'Since the start of the war, it's been very noticeable that Russia hasn't been able to devote as much time and energy and resources to influencing things in the post-Soviet space,' Amos notes. 'You see a lot of government regimes in that part of the world finding they have more space to be more independent.' Another part of the Kremlin's playbook in Moldova was the large involvement of the church, organized crime networks, voter bribes, rampant disinformation and manipulation, and Russian-backed media and political parties, Pasa explains. In Armenia, this tactic will easily be implemented. After all, money is easy to move in the country and there are many connections between Armenia's business community and Russia, he continues. 'From my perspective, Armenia is very vulnerable, having very, very strong ties with Russia, dependencies,' Pasa notes. 'Including partially in energy and other stuff, but most importantly, people-to-people, business contacts, and so on. So a lot of fortunes, businesses in Armenia depend on Russia, and that is obviously a path they will explore.' The current upheaval between Pashinyan's government and the Armenian Apostolic Church, which has been accused by the government of attempting a coup, has raised some alarm bells for organizations trying to combat disinformation. 'Beside this church (coup attempt), we see a Russian-Armenian businessman obviously linked with Russia and backed by Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zakharova, by Russian TV channels,' Vardanyan says. 'Of course, it has a connection with the elections. I can't say there is direct foreign support, but the actions of the opposition and the government—to answer very sharply—are definitely part of this election, definitely, and of course, we are closely watching the information component of all this.' It remains unclear if there is any outside interference, like from Russia, in this ongoing issue. 'It's quite possible. It's possible, but we don't know, that's the thing. It's hard to fact-check any version,' Papyan explains. Adding to this is the large market share of the media landscape still operating in the Russian language, explains Vardanyan. 'In terms of information, (Russian channels have) always been broadcast here,' he says, describing Russian as the main language for many Armenians to connect informationally with the rest of the world and thus making them more susceptible to disinformation. Part of Russia's success is its ability to use both digital disinformation and pay people to protest and sow discontent simultaneously in an attempt to undermine democratic institutions, Gogu explains. 'It's kind of going hand in hand, this information manipulation on one side and on the other side, already preparing people,' Gogu says. 'It's all together. It's very well organized.' If Russia does get involved in the upcoming elections, it would not be the first time Armenia is cyber-targeted by groups linked to Moscow. Going back as far as 2015, Russian hackers with the group Fancy Bear, believed to be operating in the interest of the Kremlin and famously associated with its alleged interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential elections, targeted journalists based in Moscow, as well as those who cover Russian affairs. Over 200 journalists were targeted by Fancy Bear between mid-2014 and 2017, according to the Associated Press , including EVN Report's Editor-in-Chief Maria Titizian. The group also targeted several Armenian government and military officials . The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB)-backed Turla has also been deployed in Armenia for cyberattacks. In September 2024, Russian hackers reportedly hacked into an Armenian government-operated database . Most of the hacking attacks that year were launched by Russian or Russian-affiliated groups. In January 2024, the hacking group Anonymous Russia launched attacks against Armenian government websites, banks, and telecommunications companies in response to the country's growing ties with the West. There were also cyberattacks in March 2024 by Russia-affiliated Anonymous Sudan on Team Telecom, one of the country's main telephone providers, and in June 2024 by the People's Cyber Army of Russia . Kremlin-backed bots have also recently directly attacked Pashinyan through false news reports, The Insider reports . While Moldova and Romania ended up electing pro-EU presidents, Maia Sandu and Nicușor Dan, respectively, the extent of Russia's interference in Armenia's upcoming elections remains to be seen. But early signs point to a troubling and emerging pattern. Tactics similar to the ones used in Moldova and Romania were observed in the recent local Gyumri elections . Avadani compares Russia's wide-reaching election interference to 'a laboratory.' 'They test all kinds of solutions, and if they succeed, it's okay,' she explains. 'If they don't succeed, at least they learn.' The extent of Russia's interference in Armenia will be determined by the stakes presented to voters in summer 2026. In places like Moldova, Romania and Ukraine, the elections were very much painted as existential, a battle between pro-West versus pro-Russian candidates, Amos notes, which Armenia has 'more or less avoided.' 'If they think someone could come to power in Armenia, who would take Armenia out of Russia's orbit and sever economic and political ties, then they'd invest more time and energy in trying to stop that happening,' Amos continues. For most of Armenia's civil society, like Vardanyan, Papyan and their teams, the Russia threat is growing and the work to combat disinformation is just beginning. 'We are watching this space and preparing for that, but we're a small NGO, just like all the others,' Papyan says. 'We feel that more needs to be done in this regard and certainly we're worried about this.'
EVN Report
2 days ago
- Health
- EVN Report
Why Armenian Children Eat So Much Sugar
Sugar is everywhere in Armenia. Sugar-laden foods are the first thing on display in nearly every corner store, among the shelves stacked with candy bars, cakes and sugary drinks. School canteens are no different, with pastries crammed alongside the khachapuri , bags of chips, and sodas of all flavors. Even at home, sugar lurks in foods that might appear healthful at first glance—in jams, jugs of the simmered fruit drink, kompot, and in homemade cakes and buttery sweet bread, gata . Feeding kids sugar is largely seen as a gesture of love, and as a consequence, Armenian children are eating it at alarming frequency. According to a 2024 World Health Organization (WHO) report that examined childrens' eating habits and health across 44 countries in Europe and Central Asia, Armenian kids aged between 11 and 15 eat more sugar per week than any other country analyzed. Nearly half reported eating chocolate, candy, or other sugary foods at least four times a week. They also rank among the top soda consumers for the same age group. 'Armenians are champions of sugar consumption,' says Arev Mazloumian, a nutritionist at the American University of Armenia (AUA) in Yerevan who has worked extensively on the Ministry of Health's school feeding programs in Armenia. 'Finally, we're first in something.' At the heart of the country's obsession with sugar is the vital role it plays in Armenian culture and daily life. Leading producers of candy are part of national identity, and giving sweets is often seen as a display of care and hospitality. But the risks associated with such high consumption are just beginning to become apparent. Like much of the world, the number of children who are overweight and obese is rising in Armenia, and doctors are reporting earlier cases of type 2 diabetes, typically considered a disease of middle-age. From a child's perspective, the appeal is simple: candy, cake and chocolate taste good. But the responsibility for making these choices often lies with the adults. Here, family has a 'very, very big influence,' says Mazloumian. Caring for children is a source of pride for families, and food plays a central role in this expression of love, with generous portions and rich foods seen as a tangible way to nurture kids. The World Food Programme reported data that showed that love and care are central to feeding practices in Armenia, with parents and grandparents expressing affection by making a child's favorite meals—even when those meals contained high levels of sugar, fat or salt. According to the study, caregivers also perceived homemade foods, including cookies and cakes, as inherently healthy since they don't contain additives. This belief also extended to traditional beverages such as kompot —which children consumed more than soda — regarded as healthy despite the high sugar content. Malzoumian also points to the misconception of honey as a health food. 'No matter how many times I tell people that honey is still a sugar, no one believes me,' she says. 'It is a better alternative, but it's still considered a sugar.' The normalization of sugar-laden foods is tied to more than just Armenian traditions, history also plays a role. The deprivation of the 90s, when food availability became scarce, caused the pendulum to swing the other way entirely, says Kim Hekimian, an associate professor of nutrition at Columbia University in New York, who has worked on local health initiatives for several decades. 'People in multiple generations went through deprivation,' she says. 'It's an understandable reaction to want to over-feed.' Sweets are also a staple of celebrations and social exchanges. Birthdays are celebrated enthusiastically, and cultural norms around hospitality mean that guests are expected to bring sweets to a home, and hosts feel compelled to offer them. Kids are also often rewarded with candy and sweet treats. 'Armenians are constantly giving candy to kids,' says Hekimian. 'All of us do it to a certain extent, as a bribe for good behavior.' Sugar consumption begins at an early age, says Satenik Mkrtchyan, the director of the School Feeding and Child Welfare Agency , which promotes balanced nutrition for schoolchildren. Things like sweetened tea are part of every family's morning and evening rituals, she says, and at a very young age kids are often given foods with sugar added to them, such as murabba (similar to jam). Sugar is even added to typically savory dishes such as kasha (a buckwheat dish) and shila (a kind of soup), to make it more palatable for children, Mkrtchyan says. Since eating habits form early in life, what children are fed in their first years can shape their preferences and health for decades to come. 'Once you have sugar, you always want it more and more and more,' says Mkrtchyan. 'You will not have any power to stop that.' That's why dietary patterns during infancy, and even the diet and health of the mother, play a key role in long-term well-being. Apart from the local dishes laced with sugar, some lingering practices from the Soviet era also shape how some infants are fed today, Hekimian says. Clinical advice once encouraged giving fruit and vegetable juices to infants only several months old — a practice at odds with modern recommendations . Such drinks contain large amounts of sugar. There was also a belief that breast milk should be supplemented with water. 'And to make that water more palatable, people would put some sugar in it,' Hekimian says. With many parents still living in multigenerational households, new mothers face pressure to follow well-meaning, but outdated, advice. 'You have generations of people who were taught those guidelines,' says Hekimian. 'These are early, early exposures that then develop taste preferences.' By the time children reach school age, many of those preferences have already been formed, and they're met with environmental challenges that offer few alternatives. Many students arrive at school with as little as 300 drams, according to the WFP report. Even if they wanted something healthier, their only options at the butka , or school canteen, are often pastries, sweets and chips. 'A lot of people mentioned that they don't even have the choice to buy something healthy,' Mazloumian says of the study. In higher-grade schools, the absence of cafeterias is also common, she says, limiting students' access to proper meals. The 'Westernization' of food has affected the availability of more nutrient-dense options at markets beyond the butka s, too. 'If you go to the supermarkets, it's all processed foods, candies,' she says. 'This was mostly in high income countries… now it's happening everywhere in the world.' Many kids might not know healthy food when they see it, either. The Mazloumian and Hekimian's experience teaching university-age students about nutrition has pointed to a bigger misunderstanding of 'healthy' foods in Armenia. When asked to name items for a healthy breakfast, many of their students mention avocado and salmon — neither of which are cheap or readily available in Armenia. 'There is a very, very, very big misconception that eating healthy is expensive,' says Mazloumian. 'You don't have to drink a 2,000 dram matcha latte or eat quinoa or avocado every day to be healthy.' Instead, beans, lentils and chickpeas, as well as seasonal fruits and vegetables which are part of a traditional Armenian dietary pattern, are affordable and nutritious, she says. Mkrtchyan and Mazloumian have been part of efforts to change eating behaviors from a young age within schools. One of the most promising efforts is the national School Feeding Program, active across Armenia's regions except Yerevan, which provides low-sugar, low-salt and limited trans fat meals to students aged six to ten. As part of her work on the program, Mazloumian has reviewed dozens of menus around the country, and sugar shows up everywhere. In some kindergartens, tea served to the children often contains several teaspoons of sugar ('Tea shouldn't even be provided to young children — let's not go there,' she says). With limited funds to create a menu, some schools lean on sugar and sweets to reach the caloric target. Meals devised as part of the School Feeding Program prove that healthy meals don't have to be expensive. These school meals can be as cheap as 150 drams per child, says Mazloumian. Such a meal would consist of a cabbage and carrot salad, rice, lentils, bread, cheese and a piece of fruit. But kids aren't always sold on the healthier plates. These menus that contain minimal amounts of added sugar or salt, 'imagine how difficult it is for that child to get used to this food.' For instance, they serve kompot without added sugar. 'No one drank that,' she says. 'Imagine you're drinking this with 40 teaspoons of sugar, and then no sugar.' The Ministry of Health recently updated their standards to reduce the amount of sugar recommended to children. From 40-45 grams per day— about a can of coke-worth of sugar — the recommended daily amount dropped to 20-25 grams, depending on age. 'But the implementation needs a lot of work,' Mazloumian says. In Kindergartens, some parents agree with the new menus, but others are resistant to the change, says Mkrtchyan, and ask for cakes and sugary teas for their kids. She's also part of an effort to roll out nutrition education to school-age children across the country. 'It's too early to measure the outcomes of this,' Mkrtychyan says, but 'the idea is to present rules for health, nutrition, physical activity and food safety.' She also suggests 'very intensive' educational work is also needed among parents and grandparents—the primary influences of a child's diet. Despite efforts to reduce sugar intake in school meals, changing broader perceptions about sugar remains difficult. Globally, the warnings about sugar are gaining traction, but this phenomenon is relatively recent. A few decades ago, fat was the taboo nutrient on supermarket shelves. Foods, such as yogurts, milks and spreads, began to be 'fat-free', but necessitated the addition of other flavors, especially salt and sugar, to remain palatable. Now, a growing body of evidence points to the overconsumption of sugar leading to long–term health effects , especially obesity , type 2 diabetes, and heart disease —Armenia's biggest killer. Armenia isn't an outlier in the global increase of overweight and obesity among kids and adults. A national study on childhood obesity found that more than a quarter of kids were overweight and about 13% were obese; those results were approximately double the previous survey three years prior. No robust data exists for diabetes prevalence among children, but anecdotally, doctors are reporting seeing diabetes at a younger age, says Mazloumian. 'People get type two diabetes after 40 years of age,' she says. 'Now they are seeing it in children.' High sugar intake is strongly associated with childhood obesity, and increased risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. But efforts to reduce sugar consumption are only beginning to be part of the conversation in Armenia—though other countries around the world may provide a blueprint. Mexico and Chile lead the way globally with comprehensive policies aimed at reducing sugar consumption. In Mexico, a sugary-drink tax introduced in 2014 led to a decline in sales of such beverages in its first two years. Chile's 2016 law mandating front-of-package warnings, prohibiting the marketing of high-sugar foods to children, and banning their sale in schools have contributed to a significant reduction in the sales of sugar-heavy foods. Armenia's membership in the Eurasian Economic Union means food labels list calories, fat and total carbohydrates—not the amount of added sugar. Without a quantifiable sugar content, taxing or regulating sugar levels is nearly impossible, says Hekimian. Public discussions about the harms of sugar overconsumption remain nascent, but from a food policy perspective, there appears to be momentum for change . Hekimian points to a growing interest within the Ministry of Health for evidence-backed regulations such as limiting the advertising of sugar-laden foods to children. One Ministry-backed study found a large proportion of products marketed to minors failed to meet nutritional standards among television advertisements, though this analysis didn't include social media. Currently, no legal restrictions exist for the advertising of sugary foods and beverages to children, 'making it hard to counter unhealthy consumption patterns,' Mazloumian says. Sweeping changes to food policy might be challenging to implement where other factors add complexity. Sugar holds a dopamine appeal, says Hekimian, especially significant as part of comfort foods in what she hypothesizes is a state of chronic low-lying depression after war and the pandemic. That national grief might complicate how public messaging lands. 'It's hard to get a message out there that says sugar is bad for you, salt is bad for you,' she says. 'No one is listening to that.' More effective policies are the ones you don't know about. In an ideal scenario, Armenian food producers could quietly reformulate recipes to slowly reduce sugar without public fanfare. 'People don't even have to know about it,' Hekimian says. Alternatively, bold legislative proposals (even if they fail to pass) can spark crucial debate, similar to what happened when lawmakers floated removing salt shakers from restaurant tables several years ago. The law never passed, but it sparked a national conversation about salt. The same could be true of sugar, Hekimian says. 'The body needs sugar,' says Hekimian. 'Nobody is recommending a total and complete ban.' But something has to change, she says. 'We can really delay the introduction of sugar, and get sugar from carbohydrates that are healthier for us.'
EVN Report
3 days ago
- Business
- EVN Report
The Art Factory: Armenia's Answer to Andy Warhol
Given the fact that Lenzi is Italian in upbringing and heritage, I was curious what he makes of Yerevan and its art scene, which is little-known outside of Armenia: 'It's dynamic and it offers everything from underground modern art to historic monuments, blending classical and contemporary influences.' Lenzi continues: 'The National Gallery and independent galleries provide platforms for a wide range of artists, including those previously underrepresented. The influx of international artists is enriching local dialogue and there are many workshops and exhibits that promote cross-cultural exchange.' As curator Choghakate Kazarian recently explained in another Artspeak column however, local art professionals sometimes ignore global trends or pay scant attention to accepted curatorial standards, though this too is changing as Armenia progresses. The Hovnanians concur: 'The scene could benefit from enhanced educational and licensing programs to bring certain aspects up to international standards.' To understand the uphill battle that YBAF and other leading arts organizations face, one must first reckon with the dearth of serious collectors in Armenia. As Lenzi explains: 'It's difficult to pinpoint exactly, but I'd say that there are probably a dozen or so serious art buyers in Armenia, though there are probably many more, less visible ones. The latter include a mix of locals, tourists, diasporans, and some foreign buyers, mainly Russians.' All told, that's not a whole lot of people, and according to Lenzi they operate in somewhat piecemeal fashion: 'The lack of an established, formal collectors' community, as seen in other countries, makes it challenging to engage with these individuals on a broader scale. It also makes outreach and market growth more complex.' But the brother and sister duo share a vision with other art workers and established curators such as Tamar Hovsepian, who all have in mind the creation of a world art market in Armenia. They hope to build on collectors such as the late Gerard Cafesjian who established the splendid Cafesjian Museum at the centrally located Cascade Monument in central Yerevan, and Aso Tavitian who recently bequeathed a priceless collection to the Clark Art Institute in Massachusetts. The art market in Armenia proper has historically been seen as more of a cultural and expressive outlet that reflects the country's eternal themes of resilience and survival. The entire idea of art as a commodity is only now beginning to infiltrate the mindset of both artists and buyers. When asked what can be done to develop the art market, Lenzi is clearheaded: 'Developing art sales platforms, organizing local auctions, and fostering a collectors' network to facilitate connections between artists and buyers—these things would all be beneficial. Additionally, educational programs about the art business could help artists and galleries build sustainable financial models and lay the groundwork for a more vibrant market in Armenia.' As someone born in Italy, Lenzi appreciates the opportunity to work in Armenia developing its post-Soviet cultural and art scene: 'Working in Yerevan's art scene is a rewarding experience, especially as we try to bring together local and international artists.' Nina Hovnanian is quick to add: 'Residencies, exhibitions, workshops, and events such as the Yerevan Biennale are key to this culture; Yerevan can establish itself as a hub for global artistic dialogue and continue to grow its art market and cultural footprint.' The Hovnanians envision the next Yerevan Biennale to take place in 2026 and are already hard at work raising funds to make it an international success. Supporting the upcoming Yerevan Biennales should be in the interest of all art lovers, as well as those with the foresight to realize that culture is the ultimate weapon in today's ongoing cultural conflicts. Art is many things. It presents unique aesthetic experiences and translates the human experience like nothing else, save perhaps writing. Art also provides an important way of affirming one's cultural relevance, and in Armenia's case, its millennial presence in the South Caucasus. Rome wasn't built in a day, but as locals are quick to remind you, Yerevan just celebrated its 2806th anniversary, making it technically older than the Italian capital. So, friends, Romans and countrymen lend me your ears: the Hovnanians and their team at Yerevan's Art Factory intend to help turn Yerevan into a cultural beacon. It's already a vibrant hub where you can relax, take in some art or as Andy Warhol would have touted, become famous for 15 minutes.
