The Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia has opened a criminal case against seven people who, according to investigators, were planning to seize power in the country by force.
In particular, the Investigative Committee claims, this group of persons recruited several Armenian citizens to undergo three-month paid training in Rostov-on-Don, including at the ArBat base, with the aim of learning how to use weapons for future combat duty.
The defendants include five citizens of the Republic of Armenia and two former residents of Nagorno-Karabakh, who “by prior agreement with other persons, deliberately created the conditions” for the seizure of power in the Republic of Armenia through the use of violence and the threat of violence.
“In particular, these persons, by prior conspiracy, with the aim of seizing power in Armenia, for a reward of about 220,000 rubles per month, under the pretext of passing a three-month training camp in the Russian Federation and getting acquainted with new types of heavy weapons, learned to use them, and then, after returning to Armenia, performed combat duties and transferred knowledge to other persons, during 2024 they recruited a number of citizens of the Republic of Armenia and former residents of NK.” – he stated in the Investigative Committee.
According to Yerevan, the “recruits” were sent to Russia to a military base called “ArBat”, where they received combat training with the aim of returning to Armenia and overthrowing the current government.
This statement was commented on by the commander of the same ArBat battalion to Sputnik. Hayk GasparyanHe explained that his battalion was the target of accusations because an allegedly Armenian battalion, the Nemesis Group, was also formed in Ukraine.
It was created after information was leaked that the ArBat battalion was being created in the Russian Federation (which actually existed a long time ago, but was officially announced only in June 2023).
“So this is just a political game: some moves, moments, levers, balances. The Armenian authorities are simply trying to distract the people from some of their failures in the political life of the republic, where they have chosen a course that is leading the country to collapse and collapse. They are trying to find the extremes, just as they blame Russia for the surrender of Karabakh. You just need someone to point the finger at.” – said the battalion commander.
At the same time, he stressed that ArBat fighters are primarily citizens of Russia and therefore are interested in the political life of their country, and political turmoil in Yerevan does not interest them.
“We have never commented in any way on the Republic of Armenia, on Prime Minister Pashinyan, or on anyone who is associated with Armenian politics. Because we are not politicians, we are military men. We are fighting for the interests of the state in which we live.” – Gasparyan concluded.
Previously EADaily reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin did not accept the credentials of the Russophobic Armenian ambassador Gurgen Arsenian.
