Russia prepared a coup in Armenia and trained militants for it
Kyiv • UNN
Armenia's National Security Service has uncovered a group recruiting mercenaries for an armed coup. Three people have already been detained
Armenia's National Security Service has prevented an attempted armed coup d'état in the country, reports the republic's Investigative Committee, writes UNN.
According to Yerevan, investigators have uncovered a group of five Armenian citizens, two natives of Nagorno-Karabakh and several unidentified individuals who have been recruiting Armenians into the mercenary Russian "Armenian Battalion" ("ArBat") since the beginning of the year.
The fighters were promised a monthly salary of 220,000 rubles and military training at a certain base of the ArBat battalion. The mercenaries were taken to Rostov-on-Don and tested for ideological loyalty, including through polygraphs. It was assumed that after that they would return to Armenia and launch an armed coup.
Armenia states that some of the mercenaries refused to participate in the operation, while others did not have time to complete the plan.
Three members of the plot have now been detained, and four more are wanted. One of the participants in the plot is the commander of the Karabakh volunteer battalion "Black Panthers" and veteran of the war for Nagorno-Karabakh, Serob Gasparyan, he has been detained, writes Pastinfo. Gasparyan is in opposition to the Armenian government and insisted on a peaceful settlement of the situation with Nagorno-Karabakh.
"Armenian Battalion" - a unit that began to be formed in September 2022 and finally formed in 2023. It is now part of the so-called "Pyatnashka" International Brigade, subordinate to the pseudo PMC "Redut", which in turn is controlled by the Russian Ministry of Defense. "Pyatnashka" has been fighting on the side of the ‘DNR’ since 2014.
In 2023, the "Armenian Battalion" was headed by a former mercenary of the PMC "Wagner", a native of Karabakh Hayk Gasparyan, writes the Russian edition of "Important Stories". Gasparyan got in the PMC from a high-security colony, where he served a seven-year sentence for armed robbery, and in January 2023 received a medal personally from the hands of Vladimir Putin.
Following the Armenian IC statements, he accused the republic's authorities of "leading the country to ruin and collapse" and stated that his battalion would only come to Armenia if "the Armenian people themselves appeal for help from an external enemy".
Until 2024, the "Armenian Battalion" did not manifest itself in any way and acted only as reinforcements, its command said. Since this summer, the formation has probably been involved in attempts to repel the AFU offensive in the Kursk region.
