Armen Tavadyan

Armen Tavadyan is the owner of “Shark” LLC, which operates Fifth Channel TV in Armenia. He received his education in Armenia and the Russian Federation. In 1993, Tavadyan founded the representation of Nagorno-Karabakh in Moscow and led it until 2005.

In addition to his involvement with Fifth Channel, Tavadyan has participated in other companies. From 2018 to 2021, he held a 49% stake in Panorama Am LLC, the owner of the panorama.am website; he acquired this stake from Ara Saghatelyan and returned it to him in 2021. Ara Saghatelyan previously served as Director of the Public Relations and Information Center of the Presidential Staff during Serzh Sargsyan’s presidency (2009–2017) and was Chief of Staff and Secretary General of the National Assembly in 2017–2018.

Tavadyan has also founded several media outlets and professional associations. His business activity is currently limited, as the companies in which he holds shares have suspended their operations or he has left them. He has also established two non-governmental organizations: “Haghtanak” NGO (founded in 2019), which suspended its activities and was dedicated to human rights and democratic institutions, and “Miasin” (founded in 2021), a charitable NGO engaging volunteers in social initiatives.

Tavadyan came to public attention in 2019, following the political transition in 2018. During the trial of former President Robert Kocharyan, who was charged in connection with the events of March 1, 2008, Tavadyan faced separate charges of attempting to obstruct justice by bribing individuals to give false testimony in favor of Kocharyan; he was described by investigators as a close associate of the former president. In 2022, the court terminated the prosecution against Tavadyan on the grounds of statute of limitations.

Tavadyan was present at rallies supporting Robert Kocharyan during the court proceedings and was accused of throwing a bottle at activist Vardges Gaspari, a charge he denied. Media coverage highlighted Tavadyan’s participation in rallies supporting Kocharyan and questioned whether his role as owner of Fifth Channel and his involvement in these public events might represent a conflict of interest.​​ Tavadyan responded, “I do not interfere in TV 5’s internal affairs. I am merely the owner. I do not interfere in professional matters.”