RUSSIA’S FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE CHIEF PAYS VISIT TO ARMENIA, MEETS WITH PRESIDENT

Axis Information & Analysis
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Eurasian Secret Services Daily Review
May 6 2009

President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan received Mikhail Fradkov, Chief
of the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) of the Russian Federation,
Armenian Public Radio reports, referring to Armenian President’s
Press Office.

Both sides discussed a broad framework of issues related
to Armenian-Russian cooperation and exchanges views on
regional developments and security questions, according to the
radio. Simulataneously came the news from the Interfax news agency
that Armenia has refused to participate in the NATO military exercises
which started in Georgia today.

Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs declares retaliation sanctions on
expulsion of Russian diplomats from Brussels AIA already wrote that the
experts practically unanimously named the head of the NATO Information
Office in Moscow, Dr. Isabelle Francois, the most likely candidate who
would be deprived of accreditation in Moscow. One more employee of the
NATO Information Office was also believed to be expelled from Russia.

Today, a source in the Russian Foreign Ministry gave a short statement
to the news agency Interfax, noting that Moscow regrets that the head
of the NATO Information Office in Moscow, Isabelle Francois, leaves
Russia. The source pointed out that she had done much for progress
of relations between the Russian Federation and the North Atlantic
Alliance. Attaché of Canadian embassy also working for the NATO
Information Office, Mark Opgenort, has been also announced persona
non grata by Russian Foreign Ministry.

It became known, that the ambassador of Canada in Russian Federation
Ralph Lisitshin was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
of Russia where he was handed over the note about deprivation of
accreditation of Isabelle Francois and one more employee of NATO
office, according to radio Ekho Moskvy. This measure became the answer
to deprivation of the NATO accreditation of two Russian diplomats,
Viktor Kotchukov and Vasily Chizhov, employees of the Permanent
representation office of the Russian Federation.