Russia accuses EU mission of spying in ex-Soviet country

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin has claimed that the EU mission in Armenia may be acting as a front for intelligence-gathering activities. He also alleged that NATO is covertly using Brussels’ presence in the country to gain a foothold in the South Caucasus region.

Last November, Yerevan signed off on an agreement stipulating the status of the EU mission on its border with Azerbaijan, which the Armenian parliament ratified in March 2024.

Speaking to RIA Novosti on Friday, Galuzin said that Russia views “the EU mission’s activities in Armenia negatively.”

“There is every reason to assume that Westerners are gathering intelligence on Russian facilities as well as all of Armenia’s neighbors,” the deputy foreign minister alleged. He pointed out that the EU mission personnel in Armenia are sending their reports directly to Brussels, apparently leaving even the host country in the dark about their contents.

Russia has a military base in the Armenian city of Gyumri, located in the northwest of the country, not far from the Turkish border. The air force component of the Russian contingent is stationed in the capital, Yerevan.

According to the diplomat, the EU is seeking to establish itself in the South Caucasus region to the detriment of such neighboring nations as Russia, Iran, and Türkiye.

The official noted that Canadian representatives joined the mission back in April, despite the country not being a member of the EU. Given that Canada is part of NATO, Galuzin conjectured that its presence in Armenia de facto means that the US-led military bloc is attempting to increase its influence in the region.

The deputy foreign minister expressed concern over the prospect of the EU mission becoming permanent even though it has not tangibly improved the tense situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.

According to the description on the mission’s website, it is “tasked with observing and reporting on the situation on the ground, contributing to human security in conflict-affected areas and supporting the confidence building between Armenia and Azerbaijan.” The initiative, which was launched at the Armenian government’s request, has a two-year mandate and includes observers from 23 EU member states and Canada.

Last month, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced that his country would pull out of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) that comprises Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan. Yerevan has repeatedly called the bloc’s usefulness into question, arguing that it failed to come to Armenia’s rescue during its military standoffs with Azerbaijan during the past four years over the long-disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

In September 2023, the Azerbaijani military conducted an offensive in the region that resulted in the dissolution of the self-declared Armenian breakaway state of Artsakh. Baku’s move was followed by a mass exodus of local militiamen and ethnic Armenians.

The Kremlin insists that the Armenian government itself recognized Azerbaijani sovereignty over the territory.