Armenian Military Most Trusted Institution in Armenia

YEREVAN (RFE/RL) — The Armenian military remains the most trusted institution in Armenia, according to an opinion poll conducted recently.

The Armenian branch of the U.S.-funded Caucasus Resource Research Center (CRRC) interviewed more than 1,600 randomly chosen households across the country in November as part of the CRRC’s annual Caucasus Barometer survey. The survey gauged public opinion in Armenia and Georgia on a wide range of issues facing the two neighboring countries.

According to its findings released last week, 51 percent of Armenians “fully trust” and another 26 percent “rather trust” their armed forces. The CRRC’s previous surveys found similarly strong popular support for the Armenian army, a sentiment that appears to reflect the unresolved Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

The latest CRRC poll shows that the Armenian Apostolic Church and other religious organizations active in the country were the second most trusted institution, with 74 percent of respondents having confidence in them.

The poll found much lower degrees of public trust towards the executive and legislative branches of government. In particular, only 18 percent of those polled said they trust President Serzh Sarkisian, according to the CRRC. Public confidence in the Armenian parliament was found to be even weaker.

Respondents were also asked questions relating to foreign policy. Two-thirds of them said they approve, in one way or another, of Armenia’s membership in the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union. Accordingly, 64 percent described Russia as Armenia’s “friendliest” foreign partner.

At the same time, 55 percent of those polled voiced varying degrees of support for Armenia’s potential accession to the European Union.