Russian registry removes data on Armenian parliamentary candidate Narek Karapetyan after probe into concealed second passport

Information about the Russian citizenship of Armenian politician Narek Karapetyan, who heads the electoral list of the Strong Armenia alliance, an electoral bloc founded by his billionaire uncle Samvel Karapetyan, has been removed from Russia’s Unified State Register of Legal Entities (EGRUL).

On May 19, the Armenian outlet Medianews published an EGRUL extract in which Narek Karapetyan was listed as a Russian citizen. The Insider verified the information and confirmed that Karapetyan is indeed listed as a co-owner of the Moscow-based company Mospromekspluatatsiya LLC with a 2.5% stake. In the extract dated May 20, the “nationality” field stated: “citizen of the Russian Federation.” By the evening of May 21, around 19:50 Moscow time, The Insider found that the data in the same extract had changed. The citizenship field now read: “foreign citizen, Republic of Armenia.” EGRUL records show the changes were made on May 20, 2026. The Insider has a copy of the May 20 extract that listed Karapetyan as a Russian citizen.

The changes were made the same day Armenia’s Investigative Committee announced a criminal case against the younger Karapetyan. Investigators said he concealed his second citizenship in order to run in the upcoming parliamentary elections, scheduled for June 7. The agency alleges that Narek Karapetyan submitted a false declaration to the Interior Ministry’s migration service, stating that he was not a citizen of another country. The case was opened under an article covering the concealment of information that could bar a person from obtaining or holding public office.

A day earlier, on May 19, The Insider published an investigation into the Kremlin’s attempts to influence Armenia’s political landscape and prevent Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s party, which has pursued closer ties with the EU and the United States, from winning. The investigation said Russia’s efforts in Armenia are being coordinated by the Russian presidential administration and that foreign intelligence (SVR), military intelligence (GRU), and FSB officers had been sent to Yerevan. The Insider also detailed the ties between several Armenian opposition politicians and Russian intelligence services, including those of billionaire Samvel Karapetyan, Narek Karapetyan’s uncle and the founder of the Strong Armenia alliance.

Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs dismissed the investigation as “spy fiction tales about the omnipresent agents of the Kremlin.”

See also

• Grabbing him by the “Beard”: The Insider identifies the FSB, GRU, and SVR agents Russia sent to Armenia to take on PM Nikol Pashinyan
• Top Strong Armenia candidate Narek Karapetyan investigated on suspicion of holding Russian citizenship