‘Country is heading for self-destruction’: Mikhail Shakhnazarov on suspension of Sputnik Armenia broadcast

Russian journalist and writer Mikhail Shakhnazarov commented to Alpha News on the suspension of the license for Sputnik Armenia broadcasts.

“It didn’t surprise me. The country is heading for self-destruction. What’s so surprising about that? Armenians, apparently, have set themselves the task, like some Baltic peoples, to remain alone. They want to be a mono-ethnic state that will eventually die out. But they forget about their neighbors, who won’t give them a quiet life anyway. So, they are heading for self-destruction. Well, they closed Sputnik. Why? Because of the quite fair criticism. When I hear that Pashinyan shut down Sputnik, well, that’s nonsense. Pashinyan is surrounded by the same scum, poorly educated, ill-mannered, like him. And there are a lot of these scum out there. So, saying that Pashinyan closed it… No, it was the Armenian government that closed it. I think they will follow the path of the Baltic republics. There is a 700-euro fine for watching Russian television,” the journalist said.

Commenting on the next steps of the Armenian leadership, Shakhnazarov sees the increasingly rapid development of restrictive measures in the media.

“The company has been broadcasting for many years. The Armenian leadership thinks, well, we will close Sputnik, we will see what they will respond to this. Then we will close another Russian channel. Then we will watch Azerbaijani and Turkish television. And everything will be fine,” Shakhnazarov predicts a possible development of events.

“Degenerates have come to power. Those who came to power have no nationality. They really are degenerates. Regarding the Armenian people, I understand that they are tired. But for a long time, the people did nothing to change anything. Except for the people of Artsakh. And, unfortunately, I don’t see anything good in the future of Armenia,” he concludes.