PM Pashinyan highlights parallels between Armenia and Europe in combating fake news

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan again warned against disinformation campaigns aimed at generating anti-government sentiments.

In a Facebook video post, Pashinyan said that a report by one of the world leaders attending the European Political Community Summit in Copenhagen with him featured that country’s experience in combating fake news. Pashinyan did not name the leader who presented the report at the summit. He noted similarities between that experience and the ongoing disinformation campaign in Armenia.

According to the report presented by the European leader, the masterminds behind the fake news campaign in their country initially conducted a survey to identify the areas where they could generate the most anti-government sentiment.

“As it turned out, these are four areas: first, nationalism; second, the church; third, healthcare and its alternative methods; and fourth, conspiracies. I guess it is clear what the takeaway is. The next conclusion is that our society, nonetheless, does not differ much from many European societies in many respects,” Pashinyan said.

There have been many instances of disinformation targeting the Pashinyan administration or individual high-ranking officials, which they have described as part of an ongoing “hybrid war” or propaganda campaign against Armenia.

A recent disinformation piece targeting Speaker Alen Simonyan was linked to an organization calling itself “Foundation to Battle Injustice,” reportedly founded by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the late leader of the Russian Wagner private military company.