Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has announced that a system for the recovery of stolen assets and funds has been implemented in Armenia, emphasizing that it operates “effectively to protect public interests.” He shared this information during a live broadcast on Facebook.

“You’ve probably heard the saying, ‘If you want to feed someone, don’t give them fish—teach them how to fish.’ The government followed this logic when introducing the system for the recovery of illegally acquired property,” he said.

According to the Prime Minister, “the system is designed to recover assets obtained through corruption or unlawfully privatized.” Pashinyan underlined that these assets “are being returned to Armenia by the force of law and noted that the system has already produced initial results.”

“I have previously presented the assets already returned to the Republic of Armenia, and I would like to emphasize two points: First, this system for recovering illegal assets, along with the broader framework for protecting state and communal interests, addresses not only instances that occurred before the 2018 revolution but also potential similar cases occurring after the revolution. This expands the significance of the system, as it targets illegal phenomena under the protection of state and communal interests rather than focusing on a specific time period,” Pashinyan explained.

He further stated that assets “stolen from the people and acquired through illegal means must be returned to the state, which means returning them to the people.”

“And today, I want to stress that this system is in place and operational, and I want to congratulate us all on this achievement because it was one of the crucial goals of the 2018 revolution. What we promised has been implemented, the system is in place, and it will recover every asset stolen from the people, step by step,” Pashinyan concluded.

The law on confiscation of property of illegal origin has been in effect since April 2020.