Russia will withdraw a number of soldiers and border guards from Armenia. The spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin announced this, a day after a conversation between Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian.
“Pashinian stated that there is no need for it at the moment, due to the evolution of the situation,” spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. “President Putin agreed and decided on the withdrawal of our soldiers and border guards.”
Peskov did not indicate how many soldiers were involved. According to Hayk Konjoryan, the leader of the ruling party in parliament, this would concern the military posts and border posts that have been established in five Armenian regions since the end of 2020. The withdrawal does not affect the largest Russian military base in the country, in Gyumri, where about 3,000 soldiers are stationed.
Armenia is an ally of Moscow, but Yerevan has increasingly distanced itself in recent months. The country blames Russian forces for not intervening in Azerbaijan’s military takeover of the separatist enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in September 2023. Until then, the enclave had been inhabited mainly by Armenians.
Today, tens of thousands of people again protested in Yerevan against the ceding of territory to Azerbaijan. As part of the search for a peace agreement, the government agreed to the return of border villages that the Armenian army captured in the Tavush region in the 1990s. The decision has been sparking major demonstrations for weeks.
Free unlimited access to Showbytes? Which can!
Log in or create an account and never miss anything from the stars.
Yes, I want free unlimited access
