Armenia’s Foreign Intelligence Service has warned of the risk of foreign interference in the country’s upcoming June 7 parliamentary elections, saying intelligence indicates that “various actors” are attempting to meddle in the electoral process by pressuring Armenians abroad to support certain political forces.
In a statement issued exclusively to Armenpress on March 10, the service said it had received intelligence that, in a foreign country, various actors presenting themselves as representatives of that country’s special services were attempting to exert pressure on individuals of Armenian origin and citizens of the Republic of Armenia engaged in economic activities there.
According to the statement, they were allegedly attempting to induce them to undertake actions supporting certain political forces that have declared their intention to participate in the upcoming parliamentary elections in Armenia.
On the same day, the Police of Armenia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs said that, based on the statement issued by the Foreign Intelligence Service, a report had been sent to the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia, which subsequently initiated criminal proceedings.
The issue became one of the most widely discussed topics in the public sphere, with different political forces interpreting the information in different ways.
Armenpress has addressed the Foreign Intelligence Service with several questions in order to clarify additional details.
– Your statement of March 10 did not contain any details, but it sparked heated public discussions on various aspects. Opinions and assessments were diverse, but the prevailing view was that the Foreign Intelligence Service’s statement should be clear so that people can orient themselves and that such statements should not cause alarm.
– The lack of details typical of intelligence service publications is, as a rule, due to the priority of protecting their activities, sources and methods. This does not mean, however, that clear operational information has not been and is not being transmitted to the competent law enforcement bodies of the Republic of Armenia. This is also evidenced by statements made by both the Police of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Armenia and the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia.
As for the claims about alarm, the Service’s goal is to inform our compatriots about such seemingly illegal processes. Within the framework of the powers vested in it by law, the Service carries out actions to prevent and counter the materialization of foreign threats against the Republic of Armenia and its citizens, and this statement should be perceived as one such action. Therefore, the circles carrying out such seemingly illegal actions may have reason to be alarmed.
– Since the statement says that pressure is being exerted on the citizens of the Republic of Armenia to support certain political forces, we also ask you to clarify which forces you are referring to, as the opposition interprets the statement as allegedly “preparing the ground for actions against the opposition” or “trying to provide an advantage for the ruling power.”
– The mandate of the Service is defined by law and includes the protection of the individual, society and the state from external threats, as well as the collection and processing of information for this purpose. Therefore, the mandate of the Service is not conditioned or constrained by the alignment of political forces or the wishes of those forces, neither the ruling nor the opposition. According to the available information, the pressure is aimed at securing support for certain opposition forces.
– Based on your statement, the Investigative Committee initiated criminal proceedings, stating that representatives of various political forces, large businessmen and criminal authorities are exerting pressure on citizens of the Republic of Armenia while acting on behalf of the special services of that country. Does the Investigative Committee have any information on whether the special services of that country are involved in this process? Can we say that in this case we are also dealing with the threat of external interference in the upcoming elections in the Republic of Armenia?
– The information received indicates that these actions pose a risk of external interference in the upcoming democratic elections in our country.
– We would also like to ask you to provide information on what work the Foreign Intelligence Service has carried out since the announcement and what new details, if any, have become known.
– The Service continues to take measures within the framework of its powers to address the issues set before it by law and, naturally, cooperates with all state bodies of the Republic of Armenia.
