Intellinews
August 2, 2018 Thursday
Russia raises concerns at actions of Armenia's post-revolution government against predecessors
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on July 31 said Moscow is "concerned" that Armenia's new government is making what he described as politically motivated moves against former leaders targeted by an anti-corruption campaign.
His remarks came after former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan was charged with violently putting down protests against his successor Serzh Sargsyan in 2008. Ten people lost their lives in the Armenian capital of Yerevan in the "Marti mek" ("March 1" in Armenian) tragedy of 10 years ago, when security forces violently dispersed anti-government protesters in Yerevan.
Kocharyan was taken into custody on July 27. On the same day, Yuri Khachaturov, the Armenian head of the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization, was charged with overturning Armenia's constitutional order in relation to the Marti mek events.
Khachaturov and Kocharyan have both denied the charges. They claim they are politically motivated.
"The events of the last few days… contradict the recent declarations of the new Armenian leadership that it was not planning to pursue its predecessors on political grounds," Lavrov said.
"Moscow, as an ally of Yerevan, has always had an interest in the stability of the Armenian state, and therefore what is happening there must be of concern to us," he said.
Lavrov said his ministry had raised its concerns with the Armenian leadership. It was hoping for a "constructive" response.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian came to power in May after leading weeks of street protests against the previous government. He has consistently stated he wants to maintain good relations with Moscow.
On August 1, spokesman for the Armenian Foreign Ministry Tigran Balayan said that "the priorities of Armenia's foreign policy are to further expand and strengthen allied relations with Russia and to increase the efficiency of collaboration within CSTO and EAEU".
Balayan added that the criminal proceedings are part of the new government's efforts to establish the rule of law and combat corruption, stating: "These processes are not connected with Armenia's foreign policy and should not be misinterpreted."
Under Pashinian's anti-graft campaign, several former top officials have been arrested.
Pashinian has pledged that he will have no oligarchs in his cabinet and will not tolerate monopolies in the economy.