Swedish media outlet reveals alleged confidential document on Russian influence in Armenian elections
The Swedish media outlet Blankspot reported that it had obtained information about alleged Russian influence on Armenia’s parliamentary elections scheduled for June 7 through a confidential document.
According to the website, the document allegedly reveals how Russia planned to reduce the popularity of the Armenian government.
Blankspot, citing a reliable source, noted that it had obtained, through a trusted source, a Russian document titled “Programme for Work in the ‘Anti-Pashinyan’ Direction for 2026.” which outlines both the general objectives and the specific methods of carrying out the work.
According to the website, among other things, the document states that a central goal is to frame the election as a vote of confidence against Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan personally.
“It also describes efforts to limit the influence of the sitting Armenian government ahead of the parliamentary elections on 7 June. Another objective is to prevent Pashinyan’s “political image” from changing or being “modernized” before the vote.
However, the document does not specify which opposition party Russia prefers over Pashinyan’s Civil Contract party. Instead, it describes the tools that are to be used to influence public opinion.
Among the proposals is a plan to triple the presence of Russia-aligned narratives on social media compared to autumn 2025 — from one million views per day to as many as three million,” according to the website.
It is noted that according to the document, the number of opinion makers in the Russia-aligned network is to be expanded from 15 to around 40 individuals.
The document further states that the most prominent among them are to be placed in electable positions within opposition parties ahead of the election.
It also describes so-called “false flag” campaigns on social media, targeted comment campaigns against campaign workers from the ruling party, and the establishment of dedicated “stringer groups” to produce exclusive content during the election campaign.
“Blankspot has been able to verify the authenticity and origin of the document, but it is not possible to determine to what extent the strategy has actually been implemented or how central it is to Russian influence efforts ahead of the election. Several aspects of the document do, however, correspond with recent developments in Armenia.
In the course of verifying the document, Blankspot established that it originated from materials obtained after a person operating within the Russian intelligence services was hacked by a third party before March 2026. His activities in Armenia mirror the contents of the document.
In Armenia, the man has participated in conferences and seminars, met opposition politicians, and frequently commented in the media on the country’s political development. The message has often been the same: that Armenia is heading down a dangerous path by turning away from Russia,’’ writes the website.
According to the website, the debate in Armenia over Russian influence ahead of the parliamentary elections led the Armenian government, already in December 2025, to request EU assistance to counter Russian influence — the same type of support that had been provided to Moldova during its parliamentary elections the previous year.
The website quoted EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas as saying, “the same networks that were previously active in Moldova are now also operating in Armenia.”
“Similar suspicions have also been directed at neighbouring Georgia, where special EU support measures were not invited during the 2024 election.
In April, Meta shut down around 70 Facebook accounts and pages in Armenia that were deemed fake. At the same time, Russian officials have repeatedly accused Armenian civil society organisations of spreading “anti-Russian narratives”.
“What becomes clear from the document is that Russian influence is not primarily about propaganda in the classical sense. It is about social engineering — creating mistrust, polarisation, and resignation within society.”
“They are not only trying to influence what people think, but how people react, feel, and act politically — during the Soviet era this came to be known as reflexive control. And it is carried out in a highly systematic, data-driven, and organised way, almost like modern advertising campaigns or psychological operations. The case of Armenia is yet another confirmation of this,” according to the website.
