Russian observation posts deployed at Armenian premier`s request -  Russian ambassador 

ArmInfo. Observation posts of Russian border guards on the border of Armenia and Azerbaijan have  been placed at the personal request of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Russian Ambassador Sergei Kopyrkin stated in an interview with 24News.

Thus, when asked to evaluate the accusations of the Speaker of the  Armenian Parliament Alen Simonyan against Russia, including the fact  that Moscow abandoned Yerevan at the most difficult moment, "deceived  the Armenian side, and in the end tried to drag it into a new war  already at territory of Armenia in order to come and "save" Armenia,  Kopyrkin noted that he would not even give any counterarguments about  the role that Russia and the country's president personally played in  ending the 2020 war.

"I would not talk now about what our peacekeepers did within the  capabilities of their actual actual mandate; I would not mention that  it is our border guards who, at the time of escalation, take steps  that actually lead to the escalation being stopped and stopped, as it  was in Nerkin Khand.

I will not even mention those observation posts, our border ones,  which, at the personal request of the Prime Minister, were placed at  Russian expense along the border with Azerbaijan in order to help  stabilize the situation. And which, by the way, the Armenian side  never decided to legitimize in legal terms and, in general, a lot of  money was actually spent on it, despite the budgetary restrictions  that Russia has," Kopyrkin noted, adding that he prefers to say what  really bothers him.

According to him, in this case it is disturbing that one of the  highest officials of Armenia is throwing such accusations. "Moreover,  this is a person who has been in the power team for a very long time  and knows from the inside what is happening in the dialogue between  Russia and Armenia and the problematic issues that may exist. And  when he throws such accusations that it is almost Russia that is  supposed to be organizing what "then..." said the diplomat.

In response to the remark that Simonyan had previously said that  Russia itself provoked the war of 2020 in order to later force  Armenia to join the Union State, Kopyrkin emphasized that the speaker  of parliament knew very well that the Russian Federation was the only  country that took all possible measures to stop this massacre and  prevent a catastrophe in all respects.

"Despite the fact that the situation was extremely difficult and it  was really difficult there, it was difficult for Russia to help solve  this problem and prevent this catastrophe. The Armenian leadership  knows this very well.

When such statements are allowed in public, I have a question: why is  this being done? This is an outright lie, and people are well aware  that this is a lie. But this is thrown out, let's say, to the general  public, to Armenian citizens, and here the question arises: why is  this being done? Well, of course, you can criticize the Russian  approach, disagree, say, we were counting on this, but Russia didn't  do what it should have done. But when it comes to outright lies,  such, you know, just outliers, the following question arises for me:   how does this relate to the real interests of ordinary people?

That is, you are telling people this - and it is not true - about the  position of Russia, which is the main economic donor, which is the  main sales market, the country in which hundreds of thousands of  Armenians work, who support their families, the country in which the  largest the Armenian diaspora, even distracted from what unites us,  history, what we have gone through together. Ties between Armenia and  Russia are a vital issue for many families in Armenia and in Russia  too. And when one of the leaders of the state engages in such  rhetoric, I wonder whose interests he is proceeding from," the  Russian diplomat asked.

"I'm not saying that Russia cannot be criticized. By the way, in  contacts with Armenian representatives, we insistently say: let's  discuss in a confidential, substantive way what problems there are,  including in matters of the CSTO's activities, what we can, what  steps should be taken to make Armenia feel more secure, taking into  account the fact that only Russia really has resources here that are  appropriate in the field of security and obligations. But there is no  answer to this, but statements of this kind are allowed, and the  question really arises, how in general How to evaluate all this and  from what interests such statements come," Kopyrkin again asked  himself.

He again stated that the situation is truly difficult now, both in  Russia and in the region. However, according to him, this, on the  contrary, should become an incentive for confidential political  dialogue and discussions.

The diplomat also noted that Russia does not even think of imposing  anything on anyone in terms of international orientation, "does not  knock on the table," even when it now sees a real danger to bilateral  relations. He added that Russia is quite normal about diversifying  relations in the international arena. "The problem is that the West  itself does not hide that this is all subordinated to something else  - geopolitical struggle, defeating Russia, etc. And, unfortunately,  all methods are used there. We see how harshly the same Americans,  the West with delegations work international platforms, in order to  push through anti- Russian decisions, resolutions, sanctions," said  the Russian Ambassador, citing as a clear example the cessation of  service to the MIR payment system in Armenia, given the large number  of Russian tourists in Armenia.

When asked whether it can be said that Armenia is being turned into  Ukraine, Kopyrkin said that he would not draw parallels, however, in  fact, in the conditions of the ongoing processes there is such a  danger.