Serzh Sargsyan says travel ban aims to prevent his departure from Armenia

Former Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan has claimed that the decision to bar him from leaving the country is politically motivated. Speaking on the Imnenimi podcast on Friday, Sargsyan said he had purchased tickets to travel abroad from November 8 for about a week but was later prevented from doing so.

He explained that prosecutors had appealed earlier court decisions rejecting restrictions against him. Although the appeals were once again dismissed, the Investigative Committee summoned him for questioning late in the evening.

“We agreed it would take place the next morning. Naturally, I went to the questioning and they imposed the travel ban,” Sargsyan said.

According to Sargsyan, the case in question is not new but dates back to 2019.

“It’s the same criminal case that went to court earlier this year. There was a particular episode that investigators had previously excluded because a witness retracted their testimony,” he said, adding that “no new criminal case has been launched".

When asked whether he believed the move was mainly aimed at preventing him from leaving Armenia, Sargsyan replied: “I think so. I can’t make a full judgment yet, but time will tell.”