Russia completes border guards withdrawal from Yerevan’s Zvartnots airport

Yerevan’s Zvartnots airport bid farewell to Russian border guards after 32 years of service.

The official ceremony was attended by Roman Golubitsky, head of the Russian Federal Security Service’s Border Service in Armenia, Edgar Unanyan, head of the Armenian National Security Service’s Border Service, Armenian lawmakers, Russian diplomats, and veterans of the border service, News.Az reports citing Russian media.

Russian border guards have been operating the checkpoint at Zvartnots since 1992. In the early 2000s, training for local Armenian border guards began, and currently, both Russian and Armenian staff serve together at the airport. Despite no prior complaints from Armenian officials about the Russian border guards, recent reports suggest that FSB officers may have exceeded their authority and denied entry to certain individuals, leading to their departure from the airport.

News.Az