YEREVAN — Press Secretary of the Armenian Foreign Ministry, Ani Badalyan, accused Russia Today and Radio Liberty of actively disseminating identical false narratives regarding Armenia’s transport route through the Syunik region.
At the same time, Badalyan questioned whether the situation bordered on fiction.
“This synchronicity — which initially seemed incredible and reminiscent of a fantasy novel — is evident not only in the titles and content of the materials published almost simultaneously by Russia Today and Radio Liberty, but also in the identical photo collages they used. It’s difficult to consider this a mere coincidence,” she said.
According to Badalyan, the “information” presented in these publications has no basis in reality and is viewed by Yerevan as part of a hybrid war targeting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Armenia.
“Radio Liberty outdid itself yesterday — disregarding even basic geographic knowledge — by referencing non-existent territories and names within Armenia. Let us recall that the Republic of Armenia includes a region called Syunik, and using alternative toponyms calls into question respect for Armenia’s territorial integrity,” she added.
Badalyan also noted the troubling pattern of such materials being published without prior consultation or clarification with the Armenian Foreign Ministry.
“Another article published on Radio Liberty‘s website that same day stated that ‘the Foreign Ministry press secretary was unavailable today,’ despite the fact that I immediately contacted the coordinator of the relevant publication, expressed official dissatisfaction with the Syunik report, and demanded its removal.”
She concluded by posing a rhetorical question:
“Unprofessionalism, deliberate manipulation, or a lack of journalistic integrity? We leave it to the readers to decide — although to us, the answer is clear: all of the above.”
In closing, Badalyan advised that rather than deleting posts after criticism, media outlets should consider the consequences in advance. Her Facebook post included screenshots of the publications in question.
Radio Liberty had posted a video on its X (formerly Twitter) page regarding the so-called “Zangezur Corridor.” The caption read:
“Iran fears it, Turkey dreams of it, and the U.S. wants to be part of it. Welcome to Zangezur.”
The video echoed Azerbaijani state narratives. After facing backlash, the post was deleted.
