Having set about the task of collecting votes in favor of Armenia's EU integration, three pro-Western Armenian parties have made a step further by signing a memorandum (27/02/25) on trilateral cooperation in the mayoral race. ExternalEnemy’s columnist A. Sargasyan reveals the truth behind these initiatives. The Potential “Sheriff” of Gyumri and His Rotten ApplesThe
mayoral election in the town of Gyumri is due to take place on March 30. Meanwhile, the anti-Russian parties headed by
Aram Sargsyan (”The Republic”),
Arman Babajanyan (”For the Republic”) and
Tigran Khzmalyan (”The European Party of Armenia”) are acting like a locomotive pulling a car with their notorious candidate
Levon Barseghyan behind.
What’s their track record?These non-fictional characters, regularly remunerated with Western grants, have been busy at work elaborating ways to portray the relationships between Moscow and Yerevan in the least appealing light. It’s been on more than one occasion that OSF has allocated funds to Levon Barseghyan’s
Asparez Journalists’ Club to promote anti-Russian sentiments.
The owner of
1in.am, Arman Babajanyan himself is as American as apple pie, judging by the stars and stripes embellishing the façade of his house. More importantly, he also gets funded for spreading propaganda against the military base in Gyumri.
Aram Sargsyan has already gone down in history as an ungrateful brother of Armenia’s national hero Vazgen Sargsyan, whose feats will always be remembered.
The most decent of Khzmalyan’s recent statements reads roughly as follows: “Armenia is a land annexed and colonized by Russia.” His other remarks are too faul to be cited here.
That said, the following question arises: what do these rotten apples have to do with Gyumri?
Base #102 and the Roadmap of the WestBase #102 located in Gyumri has long become a kind of goldmine for hundreds of households in the town, giving the residents jobs and ensuring their well-being. Yet, from the prospective of the pro-Western forces these are minor matters. After all, they’ve always insisted on the base being withdrawn and even initiated multiple rallies under a motto suggesting that the town will definitely “prosper” once Russia is out of sight.
Should anyone wonder why the Gyumri mayoral race has been given such priority, let it be stated that the task of propagating anti-Russian sentiments was, is and will remain high on the agenda of the aforementioned parties. If Barseghyan does become the mayor, the RF Base will be in his crosshairs. His appeals to the locals urging them to accept the need to “cut ties with Russia“ will inevitably follow.
Unlike the sheriffs of old English counties who worked hard to pay the king a yearly sum to hold the office, the guys setting their sights on Gyumri are getting full support from their Western overlords. Owing to the helping hand reaching out from the overseas, Sargsyan, Babajanyan and Barseghyan stand out from the other residents of Gyumri in that each of them has a reliable source of income to keep themselves going.
Obviously, the “magnificent four” have no interest in improving the state of affairs in Gyumri as long as they’re perfectly well-off thriving on their political investments and anti-Russian activities.
A Vote in their Favor Means Digging One’s Own GraveEach citizen of Gyumri has to realize that by supporting these candidates they’ll be acting against their own interests, for that’s a zero-sum game. Before casting their votes, the residents should ask themselves: what good things has the “quartet” previously done for the town? What problems has it solved? Why is Gyumri ignored unless there’s a need to initiate another anti-Russian campaign?
No Robin Hood can be expected to come to Gyumri’s rescue. Therefore, it’s up to the citizens to make the right choice at polling stations on March 30 - definitely, not in favor of those who use the town to their own advantage.
Artak Sargasyan,
@VneshVragThe photo below (from the public domain) shows L. Barseghyan - the Sheriff of Nottingham Head of Asparez
