By attacking and threatening the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia is exceeding his constitutional authority. This was stated by Nikolai Balashov, Advisor to His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus’ and Rector of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
According to Balashov, by law, the Church is separate from the state, and the Armenian people hold it in high regard and did not give Nikol Pashinyan the authority to reform it at his own discretion.
“A political figure in a secular state has no right to interfere in the structure of church life, which is determined by the canonical rules of the church itself. The Constitution of Armenia guarantees the freedom of activity of religious organizations and emphasizes that they are endowed with autonomy and separate from the state,” he said.