Armenian News Network - Groong: Week In Review Podcast

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  Dziunik Aghajanian - From Moscow to Riyadh: New Fault Lines Around Armenia | Ep 590, Sep 25, 2026 25.09.2026 1t 5min

  Conversations on Groong - September 25, 2026 In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with Dziunik Aghajanian about shifting geopolitical pressures on Armenia following Russia's September 2026 parliamentary elections. We discuss Putin's strengthened domestic position, the Armenia-Russia confrontation over the 102nd base, asset confiscation and anti-corruption efforts targeting Russian interests, and how Middle East escalation and the Iran War reshape Armenia's strategic environmen...
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  Arthur Khachatryan - Opposition Strategy, TRIPP, and the Russian Base | Ep 589, Sep 23, 2026 23.09.2026 56min

  Conversations on Groong - September 23, 2026 In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with Arthur Khachatryan, MP from Armenia Alliance, about opposition strategy following the June 2026 Armenian Parliamentary Election. We discuss the Established Opposition's plans to counter Pashinyan's agenda, territorial concessions including Tigranashen, Azerbaijani attacks on Armenian heritage, the role of TRIPP and Azerbaijan's control over transit corridors, the future of Russia's 102nd mil...
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  Armenia at 35: Independence, Loss, and Unfinished Wars | Ep 588, Sep 20, 2026 23.09.2026 43min

  Week in Review - September 20, 2026 In this week's Groong podcast episode, Hovik and Asbed reflect on Armenia's 35th independence anniversary amid ongoing regional tensions and unresolved conflicts. We discuss the state of Armenian statehood three years after the ethnic cleansing of Artsakh, Armenian prisoners of war still held in Baku, rising citizenship costs, government opacity over war casualties, and deepening Turkey-Azerbaijan strategic coordination. Topics: Armenia marks 35 years indep...
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  Warwick Powell - From BRICS to AI: The Infrastructure Multipolarity | Ep 587, Sep 20, 2026 20.09.2026 1t 7min

  Conversations on Groong - September 20, 2026 In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with Professor Warwick Powell about multipolarity, infrastructure, and the strategic implications of emerging power blocs. We discuss tangible outcomes from the SCO and BRICS summits, the shift toward local-currency settlement and financial alternatives to Western institutions, China's role as an enabling power, and how countries like Armenia navigate the infrastructure competition between TRIPP ...
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  Hrant Mikaelian - Chips for TRIPP, Education Crisis, and Economic Risks | Ep 586, Sep 17, 2026 18.09.2026 1t 6min

  Conversations on Groong - September 17, 2026 In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with Hrant Mikaelian about chip diplomacy, the TRIPP framework, and Armenia's structural economic vulnerabilities. We discuss how the U.S. fast-tracked advanced AI exports to secure the Armenia-Azerbaijan Peace Process agreement, the massive energy demands of the planned Firebird data center, Armenia's deepening education crisis, and the risks of energy dependence as the Armenian Nuclear Power Pl...
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  Gandzasar Erasure, Chips for Territory, Russian Money & Pashinyan in Space | Ep 585, Sep 13, 2026 16.09.2026 47min

  Week in Review - September 13, 2026 In this Groong Week in Review episode, Hovik and Asbed examine the fourth anniversary of the September 2022 border war, Azerbaijan's ongoing occupation of Armenian territory, and Pashinyan's political trajectory toward recognizing Artsakh's loss. We discuss Hajiyev's inflammatory rhetoric, Armenia's muted diplomatic response, TRIPP and semiconductor sovereignty, Pashinyan's attendance at a Paris space summit, Russian financial flows through Armenia, and Rus...
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  Artsakh Remembered, SCO Theater, Russian Signals, and the Cucumber Paradox | Ep 584, Sep 6, 2026 07.09.2026 56min

  Week in Review - September 6, 2026 In this week's Groong episode, Hovik and Asbed review September 2026 developments across Armenia and the South Caucasus. We examine Artsakh's remembered independence declaration on September 2, 1991, and its unresolved cause following the 2023 ethnic cleansing; Putin's signaling on Russia's military base presence; ongoing Armenian Church prosecutions; EU trade negotiations; mounting non-combat military deaths; and political pressures ahead of local elections...
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  Suren Sargsyan - Central Asia, TRIPP, Iran, and Armenia in the New Great Game | Ep 583, Sep 5, 2026 05.09.2026 53min

  Conversations on Groong - September 5, 2026 In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with Suren Sargsyan about the Iran War and great power competition for Armenia's strategic position. We discuss Washington's unclear endgame in the conflict with Iran, the future of Russia's military presence in Armenia and CSTO membership, and competing U.S. and European interests in new east-west transit routes through Armenia and Central Asia amid broader geopolitical rivalries. Topics: U.S. ob...
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  Armenia at the SCO Summit as Ukraine and Iran Wars Intensify | Ep 582, Aug 30, 2026 02.09.2026 59min

  Week in Review - August 30, 2026 In this week's Groong news roundup, Hovik and Asbed examine Armenia's position at the SCO Summit amid intensifying global conflicts. We discuss Russia's escalation in Ukraine, unprecedented Western diplomatic visits to Moscow, the renewed US-Iran War, and Pashinyan's meetings with regional and global leaders including Aliyev and Putin. We also address the ongoing persecution of former Artsakh leaders and the selective justice targeting Armenia's political land...
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  Arthur Martirosyan - The Fourth Republic and the Politics of Erasure | Ep 581, Aug 29, 2026 29.08.2026 1t 9min

  Conversations on Groong - August 29, 2026 In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with Arthur G. Martirosyan about Armenia's post-election political crisis and Pashinyan's governance agenda. We discuss the arrest of opposition leaders including Robert Kocharyan, attacks on the Armenian Church, border concessions including Tigranashen, the TRIPP corridor, and how the Established Opposition is strategizing under state repression in the Fourth Republic. Topics: Pashinyan's Revenge A...
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  Ambassador Jack Matlock - Did the West Fumble the Post-Cold War Peace? | Ep 580, Aug 28, 2026 28.08.2026 1t 3min

  Conversations on Groong - August 28, 2026 In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with Ambassador Jack Matlock, the last US Ambassador to the Soviet Union, about whether the West missed a historic opportunity to integrate Russia into Western security architecture after the Cold War. We discuss the internal collapse of the Soviet Union, Reagan-Gorbachev diplomacy, NATO expansion and Russian backlash, and how Cold War-era decisions shape Armenia's geopolitical choices today, includ...
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  Dziunik Aghajanian - Armenia Between Iran, Russia & the New Middle East Order | Ep 579, Aug 22, 2026 21.08.2026 59min

  Conversations on Groong - August 21, 2026 In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with Dziunik Aghajanian about Armenia's precarious position between Iran, Russia, and emerging Middle East power shifts. We discuss the Mecca joint defense pact signed by Turkey, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia, Iran's warnings over TRIPP, Ilham Aliyev's militarization plans in Nakhijevan, Armenia's growing energy dependence, Russian deadlines for Yerevan, and how the Established Opposition is testing it...
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  Aliyev’s TRIPP, Russia’s Deadline, Iran’s Warning | Ep 578, Aug 16, 2026 19.08.2026 48min

  Week in Review - August 16, 2026 In this episode of Groong Week in Review, Hovik and Asbed discuss Armenia's precarious position amid escalating Iran War risks, Russia's December ultimatum on the Eurasian Economic Union, and deepening security threats from TRIPP. We examine how a broader US-Iran conflict could devastate Armenia through refugee flows and logistics collapse, why Pashinyan's EAEU defiance has triggered Russian pressure, and what frozen CSTO membership actually means for Armenian...
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  Richard Campbell - The AI Infrastructure Race and Armenia’s High-Stakes Bet | Ep 577, Aug 16, 2026 16.08.2026 1t 26min

  Conversations on Groong - August 16, 2026 In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with Richard Campbell about artificial intelligence infrastructure and Armenia's Firebird project. We discuss the global AI race, the economics and energy demands of data centers, whether current AI valuations align with physical and economic realities, and what sovereign AI capacity means for Armenia's strategic positioning. Topics: Global AI race and hypeEconomics of AI data centersEnergy limits a...
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  Pashinyan’s Church War, the Russia-EU Choice, and TRIPP | Ep 576, Aug 9, 2026 12.08.2026 48min

  Week in Review - August 9, 2026 In this week's Groong episode, the hosts examine Pashinyan's confrontation with the Armenian Church, Armenia's strategic positioning between Russia and the EU, and the geopolitical implications of TRIPP. We discuss the trial of Catholicos Garegin II, Iran's military leadership realignment, the Turkey-Pakistan-Saudi Arabia defense pact, and how these shifts reshape Armenia's role in the South Caucasus. Topics: Turkey-Pakistan-Saudi AllianceIran War UpdateCatholi...
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  Hrant Mikaelian - Armenia’s Western Pivot: Strategy or Wishful Thinking? | Ep 575, Aug 8, 2026 10.08.2026 1t 3min

  Conversations on Groong - August 8, 2026 In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with Hrant Mikaelian about Armenia's Western pivot and the opening of the new parliament. We discuss Ruben Rubinyan's appointment as speaker, Armenia-Russia-EAEU relations, lessons from the 44-Day War, European aid for Armenia, the role of the Armenian Church in national identity, and Armenia's economic direction amid geopolitical pressure. Topics: New Armenian ParliamentArmenia-Russia-EAEU Relations...
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  Tigranashen Unanswered, Russia’s Railways Challenged | Ep 574, Aug 2, 2026 04.08.2026 26min

  Week in Review - August 2, 2026 In this week's Groong Week in Review, Hovik and Asbed discuss Armenia's new parliament sworn in on August 2, 2026, and the Armenia Alliance's direct challenge to Civil Contract over Tigranashen. We examine the government's evasive responses on territorial red lines, Armenia's challenge to Russia's railway concession, and how TRIPP reshapes regional power dynamics in the South Caucasus. Topics: New parliament is sworn inTigranashen and Armenia's territorial red ...
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  Pietro Shakarian - Memory Under Siege: From Stalin to Pashinyan | Ep 573, Aug 3, 2026 03.08.2026 1t 16min

  Conversations on Groong - August 3, 2026 In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with Dr. Pietro Shakarian about memory, repression, and state power in Armenia across Soviet and contemporary periods. We discuss the Great Purge in Soviet Armenia, the assassination of Aghasi Khanjyan, the suppression of Armenian national institutions under Stalin and Beria, and the parallels between Stalinist erasure and current efforts to control public memory, symbols, and mourning in post-Artsak...
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  Christine Arakelian - Forever Wars, NATO 3.0, Armenia's High-Stakes Western Pivot | Ep 572, Jul 31, 2026 01.08.2026 1t 33min

  Conversations on Groong In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with Christine Arakelian about American foreign policy fractures, Iran war risks, and Armenia's pivot to the West. We discuss whether the United States has coherent foreign policy, the collapse of the MAGA coalition over Forever Wars, NATO 3.0 and Europe's militarization, and how Pashinyan's post-2026 Armenian Parliamentary Election government is navigating TRIPP amid global instability. Topics: US Foreign Policy &am...
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  From Caspian Drones to Armenia’s Cold Winter | Ep 571, Jul 26, 2026 29.07.2026 56min

  Week in Review - July 26, 2026 In this week's edition of the Armenian News podcast, Hovik and Asbed analyze escalating regional tensions as Ukraine expands operations into the Caspian Sea, striking Iranian and Russian assets. We examine how this merger of the Northern and Southern conflicts affects Armenia, Kazakhstan's energy security, and Pashinyan's diplomatic positioning amid new pressure from Western capitals following Aliyev's recent visits to Germany and Berlin. Topics: Ukraine expands...