Russian Border Guards Do Not Have the Right to Check Travelers at Zvartnots Airport: NGO

The National Security Service of the Republic of Armenia (NSS) and the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) are jointly violating the Armenian-Russian interstate agreements and the legislation of the Republic of Armenia, Union of Informed Citizens NGO said in a statement issued on Tuesday, May 12. Russian border guards, the authors said, do not have the right to inspect the departing and arriving passengers at the Armenian Zvartnots International Airport. 

In response to an inquiry by the NGO, the Armenian NSS stated that the Russian FSB border guards administer these services at the Zvartnots airport pursuant to the bilateral agreement between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Armenia “On the Status of Border Troops of the Russian Federation in the Territory of the Republic of Armenia and Terms of Their Functioning” (1992). Meanwhile, according to the organization there is no provision in the agreement conferring the right to Russian border guards to carry out any service at any Armenian airport. 

“Instead, it is clearly stipulated in the Article 3 of the agreement that the Russian border troops are not involved in the implementation of functions that are not related to the protection of the borders with Turkey and Iran (with the exception of elimination of effects of natural disasters, accidents, etc.).

Moreover, Article 6 of the same agreement reads that the Russian border troops carry out the passage of persons, vehicles, cargoes, goods and other items through the crossing points located on the Turkish and Iranian borders in accordance with the legislative acts regulating the procedure of crossing the border. Note that it speaks only about the checkpoints on the Turkish and Iranian borders, and there is no word about the checkpoints at airports.

This approach raises serious concerns, as we are talking about the Armenian national security bodies illegally transferring border control functions to another state, which is, in a way, a yield of state sovereignty,” Union of Informed Citizens NGO said.