Past daily of the Republic of Armenia (RA) writes as follows, in particular: Immediately after suffering defeat in the 44-day war [in 2020], [PM] Nikol Pashinyan replaced the RA defense minister. Pashinyan's chief advisor and close confidant Vagharshak Harutyunyan—who in the early 2000s was dismissed from the troops with a big scandal and deprived of the epaulettes of lieutenant general and, with the intervention of Nikol Pashinyan, restored the highest military rank in August 2019—was appointed to this position.

Before being appointed to the post of defense minister, Vagharshak Harutyunyan held the post of chief advisor to Pashinyan and coordinated the military bloc, and now he has been registered as a candidate for MP by the Central Electoral Commission [of Armenia].

Information is circulating that Vagharshak Harutyunyan, appointed by Nikol Pashinyan to the position of Minister of Defense, was a citizen of a foreign state, the Russian Federation [(RF)], at the time of assuming the position, as well as presumably also at the present time. (...).

Due to the requirements of the legislation on the protection of personal data, Mr. Harutyunyan’s passport number has not been published.

According to the RA Constitution, only a person who is a citizen of the Republic of Armenia and has the right to vote can be appointed Minister of Defense.

Pashinyan is obligated to answer the following questions:

1. Did he learn about Vagharshak Harutyunyan being an RF citizen and abuse his official position by intentionally violating the RA Constitution and appointing a citizen of a foreign state to the position of RA minister of defense?

2. Did Pashinyan not sufficiently master the situation and appoint a foreign citizen to the most accountable position in the RA Armed Forces and award the highest military ranks?

3. How did the Central Electoral Commission [of Armenia] register as a candidate for MP weeks ago Vagharshak Harutyunyan, a close associate of Pashinyan, a person who supposedly has RF citizenship, who in the upcoming [parliamentary] elections [in Armenia] can supposedly play the role of a vote-stealer and a “vote-disperser” from the opposition?

By the way, our sources convey that Vagharshak Harutyunyan was supposedly not the only [Armenian] official who had RF citizenship at the time of holding the position of minister.

Let us recall: months ago, information had appeared in the press that Nikol Pashinyan’s own brother also has Russian Federation citizenship.

Source: https://news.am/en/news/1036885