Honorary Consul of Armenia in Yekaterinburg dismissed from office

The Armenian Foreign Ministry has confirmed the dismissal of Narek Spartakyan, the country's honorary consul in Yekaterinburg, who supported the Armenian Apostolic Church.

“Narek Spartakyan has been relieved of his duties as honorary consul in Yekaterinburg (Sverdlovsk Region),” the Armenian Foreign Ministry said in response to a request from Sputnik Armenia.

The ministry did not provide any further details, nor did it answer the question of whether this was related to Spartakyan's position on the situation surrounding the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC) and businessman Samvel Karapetyan.

According to the agency, Spartakyan had previously stated that “any actions against the AAC as an important foundation of the spiritual unity of all Armenians are unacceptable.” As for Karapetyan, he noted that he respects him and that for many, Karapetyan is an example of how to create.

Relations between the Armenian authorities and the Armenian Apostolic Church deteriorated sharply after Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan posted offensive messages about the Armenian Apostolic Church on Facebook* at the end of May, including the use of profanity. He later proposed changing the procedure for electing the Catholicos of All Armenians and giving the state a decisive role in the process.

Karapetyan, an entrepreneur and philanthropist who stood up for the church, was arrested, sparking outrage among numerous representatives of the diaspora around the world, who told RIA Novosti that political persecution of the church and its supporters was unacceptable. Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, leader of the Holy Struggle movement, was also arrested. He was the leader of the protesters who demanded the prime minister's resignation in 2024. At the end of June, Archbishop Mikael Adzhapakhyan, head of the Shirak Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, was arrested in Yerevan. A case was brought against him and he was accused of calling for a seizure of power. The hierarch himself called the charges fabricated. Before Ajapakhian's arrest, Armenian National Security Service officers arrived at the residence of the Catholicos of All Armenians in Echmiadzin to detain the archbishop, but were met with resistance from believers and priests.

Reprinted from https://ria.ru/