Armenia’s Foreign Ministry on Monday dismissed reports that it is in negotiations with the United Kingdom to accept illegal immigrants that official London wants to unload to other countries.
“The Armenian side did not conduct substantive and technical negotiations with the United Kingdom regarding the sending of illegal immigrants to Armenia,” foreign ministry spokesperson Ani Badalyan told this the Russian RIA Novosti news agency.
“Armenia and Great Britain have a broad political dialogue agenda, but there have been no substantive or technical negotiations regarding the specific issue raised in the publication,” Badalyan said in response to a query by the Russian news agency.
Yerevan’s response stemmed from an article published by the Times of London, which citing a leak from the UK Foreign Office, reported that the Foreign Office held talks with representatives of Armenia, Ivory Coast, Costa Rica, and Botswana in order to conclude an agreement to send illegal immigrants from the UK to those countries.
According to the article, the UK authorities are hoping to replicate an agreement they reached with Rwanda, which “assumes that illegal immigrants expelled from the UK will be able to apply for it in Rwanda, and also, it assumes the ruing out of the possibility of immigrants being deported to their home countries where they may be at risk,” the Times said.
“A dialogue on this matter is underway with Armenia, Botswana, Cote d’Ivoire, and Costa Rica,” the Times wrote, citing a document of the UK Foreign Office at its disposal.
According to the Times, London started technical negotiations with Yerevan in September of last year, when UK Deputy Foreign Minister Leo Docherty visited Armenia. The Times report adds that “the Armenian authorities are following the developments of the situation around Rwanda after the UK parliament voted in favor of the new law.”
