The Armenian Ambassador to Russia, Gurgen Arsenyan, who was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry on July 7, was asked to convey to the Armenian authorities the possibility of economic sanctions against Yerevan, Armenian press outlets say, citing diplomatic sources, EDnews reports.
Russia threatened to resort to such measures if Armenia "complies with the West's demand" to block Russian state TV channels in the country's public multiplex.
It is noted that the conversation between Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin and Arsenyan was not pleasant.
"The ambassador was directly told that they know what the Armenian authorities have planned and how they are stirring up anti-Russian sentiments," diplomatic sources said.
Earlier, the speaker of the Armenian parliament, Alen Simonyan, stated the need to seriously consider suspending the broadcasting of Russian TV channels in the country. He called Russian TV hosts "degenerates" who are escalating tensions and negatively affecting Armenian-Russian relations.