Two priests from Russian AAC churches were sent to Armenia for military training.
During their stay in Armenia, priests of the Armenian Apostolic Church in Voronezh and Izhevsk were served summonses for 25 days of military training. They are unable to leave the country and are being sent to the training camp.
As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," military police at the airport served summonses for 25 days of military training to Armenian citizens who arrived from Russia to vote in the parliamentary elections. The same applies to people arriving from other countries. The authorities threatened criminal prosecution for those who refuse to participate in the training camp.
A journalist wrote on her Facebook page* that two priests were banned from flying to Russia
According to her, Father Jeremiah, a priest of the Armenian Church in Izhevsk, informed them that they could not return to the Russian Federation, since both he and the Voronezh priest received notice of being sent to 25-day training camps during their short visit to Armenia. "They reported to the military registration and enlistment office, ready to serve the Armed Forces of the Motherland for a second time. Defense Ministry officials made it clear to the priests that they had no choice; returning was prohibited. And tomorrow, June 23, they will have to go to serve," Badoyan writes.
Armenian media, citing Badoyan, reported that the National Security Service of the Republic of Armenia (NSS) has banned two priests of the Armenian Apostolic Church from returning to Russia at Zvartnots Airport, Yerevan reports. Today.
The journalist clarified that the clergy did not arrive at the Yerevan airport. "They didn't make it to Zvartnots, but even if they had, the flight would have been banned because they received notification of a training camp," Badoyan wrote.
As a reminder, an investigation was published on June 1st that shows how Moscow, with the help of pro-Russian blogger Mika Badalyan, is organizing flights for Russians with Armenian passports to Armenia on the eve of the elections. They even specified the exact date: June 4th. They are buying tickets for anyone who wants them, meaning they are giving out free round-trip tickets. "This is also interference in the elections, which is punishable under Armenian laws," said political scientist Harutyun Mkrtchyan. The Anti-Corruption Committee suspected Badalyan of distributing pre-election bribes.
Ahead of the parliamentary elections, analysts pointed out that the figures of 100,000 representatives of the diaspora who intend to vote in Armenia appear inflated. At the same time, those who agreed to come to vote do not necessarily support Pashinyan's opponents, although the participation of the diaspora in the vote may significantly affect the distribution of seats in parliament.
The Civil Contract party received 61 mandates in parliament, the Strong Armenia bloc - 28 mandates, and the Armenia bloc - 12 mandates, the Central Election Commission of Armenia stated. Taking into account the mandates of national minorities, the Civil Contract has 64 mandates, and Karapetyan's bloc - 29. The opposition appealed the election results in the Constitutional Court.
Analysts named the Prosperous Armenia party of oligarch Gagik Tsarukyan, the Armenia bloc of former President Robert Kocharyan, and the Strong Armenia bloc of businessman Samvel Karapetyan as the most pro-Russian participants in the elections.
The parliamentary elections effectively became a referendum on the future of the current government and Armenia's foreign policy course. The "Caucasian Knot" published a report "2026 Elections to the National Assembly (Parliament) of Armenia".