Russian state television host Vladimir Solovyov on Sunday called for Russia to launch a “special military operation” against Armenia.
Comparing the situation in Armenia to Venezuela in a vitriolic monologue, Solovyov said: “For us, the developments in Armenia are far more painful than those in Venezuela. Losing Armenia is a huge problem.”
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“We should get our goals straight. The time for games is over. To hell with international law and the global order,” the pundit continued.
“If it was necessary for us to start a ‘special military operation’ on the territory of Ukraine for our national security why, based on the same considerations, can we not start a ‘special military operation’ in other points of our zone of interest?”
The term “special military operation” is Moscow’s euphemism for its full-scale war in Ukraine.
Armenia’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday that Russian Ambassador to Armenia Sergei Kopyrkin had been issued a summons over the inflammatory remarks.
The ministry’s spokesperson said that it had emphasized in a note to the ambassador that such remarks “constitute an unacceptable encroachment on the sovereignty of the Republic of Armenia… and grossly violate the fundamental principles of friendly relations between Armenia and Russia.”
Armenian politicians also hit back, with Arusyak Julhakyan, an MP from the ruling Civil Contract party, describing the comments as a “hostile manifestation towards Armenia,” according to OC Media.
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Ruben Rubinyan, the Armenian Parliament vice speaker, likened Solovyov to a “dog barking,” while Aram Sargsyan, the former prime minister, condemned “proposals to turn Armenia into a Russian zone of influence and subjugate it by military force.”
Arman Babajanyan, the leader of the For The Republic Party, described the comments as a “direct signal” from Russia and a “justification of the right to use force and coercion.”
“The logic is this: the statehood of other peoples is viewed as a tool for exerting influence over them,” he said, according to JAM News.
Solovyov’s TV show has been blocked in Armenia since 2024 after he ramped up belligerent rhetoric against Yerevan and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
The state propagandist has also frequently called for Moscow to launch nuclear weapons at Ukraine and European capitals, and described war as “sacred.”
In September, he similarly threatened a new “special military operation” in Azerbaijan, describing events in the South Caucasus as a “huge problem.”