On the same day, Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa signed into law amendments extending his term and scrapping direct presidential elections, while Kazakhstan’s Constitutional Court ruled that President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev may seek another term after a constitutional reset. Separately, Armenia’s government is advancing plans for a 2027 referendum to remove territorial claims from its founding document, a step viewed in Western capitals as locking in a strategic reorientation away from Moscow.

In Harare, the information ministry announced the law as “signed, sealed and delivered,” while opposition figures and human rights groups described it as a “constitutional coup” that privatises power and suspends direct presidential elections indefinitely. In Astana, the court’s decision follows a March referendum that, according to the government, transitions Kazakhstan from a “super-presidential” system to a presidential republic with an influential parliament, though analysts in the region note the changes expand presidential appointment powers and create a new People’s Council appointed by the president. In Yerevan, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s Civil Contract party, which won a June snap election despite what Western intelligence sources describe as a broad Russian disinformation campaign, argues that the current constitution’s reference to reunification with Karabakh leaves the country vulnerable to future governments reversing its pro-Western course.

Viewed from Washington and Brussels, Armenia’s constitutional reform is seen as essential to securing the durability of the August 2025 framework deal with Azerbaijan and the country’s integration into trans-Caspian connectivity projects such as the Middle Corridor. Moscow, according to leaked documents and investigations, sought to manipulate the Armenian vote through oligarchs with dual citizenship and information warfare, viewing the constitutional status quo as a means to restore its influence. In Kazakhstan, the term-limit reset places Tokayev among a series of post-Soviet leaders who have used constitutional amendments to extend their rule, a pattern also observed in Russia, Belarus, and Tajikistan. Zimbabwe’s amendments, according to opposition lawyer Tendai Biti, effectively suspend elections and transfer power from millions of citizens to those controlling party primary processes.

The Zimbabwean changes were passed by the Zanu-PF-dominated parliament without a referendum, which critics say violates the constitution; legal challenges are expected. In Kazakhstan, Tokayev stated in a 2025 interview that he would not run again in 2029, but the court ruling now permits him to remain in office until 2036. Armenia’s referendum is planned for 2027, with passage uncertain as nationalist opposition groups, some linked to Russian-Armenian business interests, mobilise against it. The outcome of these constitutional processes will shape not only domestic power structures but also the broader geopolitical landscape, from the South Caucasus to Central Asia and southern Africa.