The Kremlin’s domestic policy bloc has been given a new task — overseeing Armenia. According to Minval, citing Vedomosti, First Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration of Russia, Sergey Kiriyenko, along with his subordinates, is now responsible for information operations in Armenia. This role was previously held by Dmitry Kozak.
Kiriyenko had already been overseeing separatist regions such as Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Transnistria, Donbas, and Moldova. The primary goal is to promote Russian interests through “soft power” mechanisms.
Sources note that there are currently no electoral goals in Armenia, as parliamentary elections are two years away. The Kremlin is instead focused on shaping the agenda and exerting informational influence. Russian authorities are concerned about Yerevan’s increasing closeness with the West, which they see as a threat to Russian geopolitical interests.
Three departments of the Presidential Administration are working on Armenia: the Department for Internal Policy (headed by Andrey Yarin), the Department for Monitoring and Analysis of Social Processes (headed by Alexander Kharichev), and the Department for Public Projects (headed by Sergey Novikov).
According to sources, the most likely winner of the 2026 elections will be the current Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan. However, the Kremlin is not aiming to change the leadership but rather to preserve its presence and influence. There are virtually no pro-Russian politicians left in Armenia — apart from former presidents Serzh Sargsyan and Robert Kocharyan, Moscow lacks strong figures in the local political arena.
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