The Southern District Military Court sentenced Sagid Murtazaliev, the former head of the Dagestan Pension Fund, in absentia to life imprisonment. He was found guilty of organizing a murder and financing an illegal armed group.
Representatives of the Russian opposition staged a performance outside the Russian Embassy in Yerevan. Wearing masks of Vladimir Putin, they staged a dinner with raw meat. They claimed this symbolic act embodied the image of the Russian leadership, whose "hands are stained to the elbows with blood."
The protest was billed as a protest against possible Russian influence on Armenia's electoral process and domestic politics. A closed event involving Russian officials and diplomats was simultaneously held in the embassy building.
Earlier, Reuters, citing Western intelligence sources, reported on Vladimir Putin's plans to relocate approximately 100,000 ethnic Armenians from Russia to Armenia in order to influence the results of the June 7 parliamentary elections against Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's party. Approximately $50 million has been allocated for this operation.
As a reminder, Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan recently expressed concerns about Armenia's possible accession to the European Union, calling it a risk to their interests, and demanded a referendum on the issue.
Today, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk stated that Moscow would reconsider its support for Armenia within the EAEU if pro-European forces win the parliamentary elections.
"We must wait for the election results before taking appropriate steps. We cannot provide financial assistance to a country that is oriented toward the EU, which is preparing for a confrontation with Russia. There is no point in investing in those who could potentially become our adversaries in the future," Overchuk emphasized.