LGBTIQ+ rights in Eastern Europe and Central Asia have once again become the focal point of a widespread crackdown on freedoms. The 2025 Rainbow Map by ILGA-Europe, alongside the annual Pink Armenia report on the human rights situation for LGBTIQ+ people in Armenia, paint a troubling picture: the region is balancing on the edge of a dark regression—where state institutions turn difference into a target and silence becomes a form of violence.
Mamikon Hovsepyan, Advocacy Expert at Eastern European Coalition for LGBT+ Equality, describes the situation as follows: “The 2025 ILGA-Europe Rainbow Map and the reports of local organizations in Eastern Europe and South Caucasus reveal a troubling regression in LGBTIQ+ rights across the region, marked by legal rollbacks, rising hate crimes, and intensified political scapegoating.” He highlights that the current environment “reflects a complex interplay of progress and persistent challenges,” where despite hostility, activists and civil society groups “pushing for equality and building solidarity across the region” remain crucial actors.
The situation in Georgia stands out as especially alarming. In 2024, a law was passed nearly replicating Russia’s anti-LGBTIQ legislation. Mamikon explains: “This legislation, which is a copy of Russia’s anti-LGBTIQ bill and is a result of pro-Russian party in Georgia, imposes restrictions on rights to education, health, freedom of expression, and peaceful assembly for LGBTIQ+ individuals.” He emphasizes that “the law represents a significant regression in human rights, targeting the LGBTIQ+ community and undermining their fundamental freedoms,” and further adds that it “provides more impunity to anti-gender groups and puts human rights defenders at risk.”
In Armenia, the climate remains hostile as well. Mamikon notes: “Hate crimes and hate speech directed at LGBTIQ+ individuals remain pervasive, yet the state has demonstrated limited action to address these issues.” He also points out that “Many victims do not report incidents to law enforcement due to mistrust stemming from experiences of indifference, abuse, or inaction by authorities.” This environment of impunity, he warns, “inflames the marginalization and vulnerability of the LGBTIQ+ community.”
While Moldova shows some positive shifts, such as increasing visibility and a growing LGBTIQ+ social presence, “negative attitudes toward the community persist, especially in areas outside Chisinau, the capital city.” Furthermore, “discrimination remains widespread, particularly in areas like education and healthcare, where there is a marked reluctance to accept LGBTIQ+ individuals.”
Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine has deeply impacted the situation for LGBTIQ+ individuals, especially regarding marriage equality, trans rights, and healthcare access. As Mamikon states, “the absence of legal recognition for same-sex relationships became even more evident, especially in cases involving military personnel, where partners lacked rights like hospital visitation and inheritance.” Although “petitions for marriage equality and transgender rights gained some traction,” “no immediate legal actions were taken.”
The occupation of Ukrainian territories by Russian forces has drastically worsened conditions. “Many queer people in these areas have been forced to hide their sexual orientation or gender identity, and some have even been tortured or killed by occupying forces.” Mamikon frames this within a larger political trend, saying “the current state of LGBTIQ+ rights in Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus reflects a broader trend of democratic backsliding and the rise of authoritarianism.” He further warns that “coordinated efforts by far-right actors to marginalize LGBTIQ+ communities threaten not only individual rights but also the foundational principles of democracy.”
The wave of bans and repression targeting Pride events is not isolated but part of a wider ideological shift. “The rise of anti-LGBTIQ+ measures across Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus does appear to reflect a broader ideological shift.” This is “part of a regional (and in some cases, global) conservative backlash against progressive human rights norms.”
Governments in the region use anti-LGBTIQ+ rhetoric strategically to “distract from domestic failures (e.g., corruption, economic decline), to consolidate political power by mobilizing conservative or religious voter bases, and to create internal ‘enemies’ to strengthen national identity and justify authoritarian measures.” “Gender ideology” becomes a tool to resist feminist, queer, and democratic reforms. As Mamikon summarizes: “The conservative backlash is not just about LGBTIQ+ rights, it reflects a broader conflict over the future of democracy and human dignity. LGBTIQ+ communities have become symbolic battlegrounds in a wider ideological war.”
Despite the setbacks, some countries remain points of hope. Ukraine stands out: “Despite the Russian invasion and ongoing war, Ukraine has emerged as a regional leader in LGBTIQ+ advocacy. The war has reframed the LGBTIQ+ struggle as part of the broader fight for freedom, democracy, and alignment with the EU.”
In Georgia, despite restrictive laws, “a relatively vibrant queer civil society and active public resistance, especially among youth, artists, and pro-European groups,” continues to exist. Armenia has seen some progress as “courts in some cases have recognized bias-motivation and discrimination against queer individuals.” Moldova, although less visible internationally, “has anti-discrimination laws and the government has engaged with EU recommendations on equality and rule of law.” However, Mamikon cautions: “How things will shift in these countries after the upcoming elections remains a major question and source of concern.”
The primary challenge is a lack of effective support. According to Mamikon, “International institutions need to move beyond symbolic gestures and adopt bolder, more strategic, and context-specific approaches.” He stresses that “Condemnations and statements of solidarity often have little material impact, especially in semi-authoritarian regimes that thrive on anti-Western narratives.”
Instead, “They should implement smart conditionality, ensuring conditions are realistic, clear, and don’t punish civil society or the general population.” Additionally, “they need to provide core, long-term funding to civil society, not just project-based grants, to ensure sustainability.” Mamikon also calls for “Those institutions can elevate LGBTIQ+ rights within EU Neighborhood Policy and Eastern Partnership frameworks but also use quiet diplomacy when needed, however ensuring non-negotiable red lines exist around state violence or legal regression.”
The situation of LGBTIQ+ rights in Eastern Europe and Central Asia is not merely a question of identities—it is a test of democracy, solidarity, and humanity. Where the right to be oneself disappears, all other freedoms weaken. Today, the region faces a choice: to succumb to regression under the guise of “tradition” or to uphold dignity as a universal value requiring no translation. In this struggle, VirusOFF reminds – vulnerability becomes a form of courage, and resistance—an act of hope. Because this fight is not only for equal rights but for a future in which no one will be left behind.
