Armenia reportedly bans two pro-Kremlin propagandists from entering country

By Azernews

By Sama Imanova

Armenia has reportedly banned two pro-Kremlin propagandists from entering the country, Azernews reports, citing foreign media.

They are the first deputy chairman of the Russian State Duma Committee, MP Konstantin Zatulin, and the editor-in-chief of state broadcaster Russia Today, Margarita Simonyan, the media reports.

In a remark on the issue in question, MP Konstantin Zatulin said he had received a letter from Tigran Seyranyan, the head of the Foreign Relations Department under the National Assembly, to this end.

“It was unexpected for us, we received a letter from the head of the Department for Foreign Relations under the Armenian National Assembly. I was told that my visit is undesirable and that my recent public statements damaged the development of friendly and allied relations with the Republic of Armenia”, Zatulin said, calling it an "insulting move".

Asked on what ground, Zatulin was banned from entering Armenia, the Armenian National Security Service (NSS) didn't provide any information, claiming that it violates the privacy of that person’s personal life.

“We can provide that information only to the person you mentioned or to the person authorized by the latter,” the NSS said.

In the meantime, asked if Armenia is going to quit the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), Alen Simonyan, Speaker of the National Assembly of Armenia, said that the Armenian government was not discussing the issue.