Russia accuses EU of campaign against Orthodox Church in Armenia

Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) has accused the European Union of attempting to force the Russian Orthodox Church out of Armenia as part of the country’s European integration process.

In a statement, the SVR alleged that Brussels is pressuring Armenian authorities to sever what it described as centuries-old religious and spiritual ties with Moscow.

According to the Russian intelligence agency, the EU Partnership Mission in Armenia, established in April this year, has launched what it called a campaign against Russian Orthodoxy. The SVR claimed that EU representatives are seeking to strip the Diocese of Yerevan and Armenia of the Russian Orthodox Church of its rights to use church property and to obstruct its engagement with local religious institutions, particularly the Armenian Apostolic Church.

The statement further alleged that the European Union has demonstrated its approach to addressing so-called “hybrid threats” in Armenia through actions targeting Father Timofey Kazaryan, rector of the Chapel of Archangel Michael at Russia’s 102nd military base in Gyumri.

The SVR alleged that the Union of Informed Citizens and the Vanadzor Office of the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly—two non-governmental organizations it claims receive backing from Brussels—had accused the cleric of attempting to influence Armenia’s parliamentary elections, scheduled to take place on June 7. 

The Russian agency also claimed that Armenia’s European partners are currently preparing compromising material against other representatives of the Diocese of Yerevan and Armenia in an effort to encourage Armenian authorities to launch broader measures against the Russian Orthodox Church.

The statement concluded with a broader criticism of the European Union, asserting that relations between Armenia and Russia predate the EU by centuries. The SVR argued that the religious and spiritual ties between the Russian and Armenian peoples are stronger and more enduring than contemporary political projects and would withstand what it described as attacks by European officials.

By Vafa Guliyeva