Gyumri murder points to vulnerability of Armenia's sovereignty

The Russian military serviceman suspected of killing a woman in the city of Gyumri must be kept at the local SIZO (pre-trial prison); his stay at the military base contradicts the norms of the Armenia-Russia agreement, the lawyers interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" have stated.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that the 57-year-old Djulietta Gukasyan, a Gyumri resident, died in hospital after being beaten up at night on December 3. After the murder, a Russian soldier was detained; he faces up to ten years in prison under the article of intentional infliction of grievous bodily harm, which, through negligence, caused the victim's death. Armenia handed the suspect over to the Russian party; and he is kept in the territory of the 102nd Russian military base.

Armenian lawyers treat his stay there as a violation of the agreement on the deployment of the Russian base in Armenia. The criminal responsibility of a Russian military for an offense committed in the territory of Armenia should be regulated by the Armenian legislation, Norair Norikyan, a lawyer and a member of the Armenian Bar Association, believes.

He treats the fact that Armenia cannot fully and completely execute justice in relation to the Russian soldier as depressing.

"It turns out that any Russian military serviceman can commit a crime in the territory of Armenia, and then purposefully stay in the territory of the military base and under its protection," the lawyer argues.

Mr Norikyan is confident that this practice is a threat to Armenia's sovereignty. "The case is only formally with the Armenian law enforcement agencies; however, they really cannot conduct a full investigation. I do not rule out that in the end our judges will have to visit the base with the Armenian flag and coat of arms in order to hold court sessions there, as it was in the case of Permyakov," the lawyer has concluded.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on December 21, 2018 at 08:18 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.