Moscow Authorities Discuss Situation Regarding Imported Fruits from Armenia at Food City

The Ambassador of Armenia to Russia, Vardan Toghanyan, and the head of Moscow's Department of Trade and Services, Alexey Nemeryuk, discussed the situation regarding the entry of Armenian products into the Food City market, as reported by RIA Novosti.

According to Nemeryuk, trucks from Armenia entered the market on Sunday without any issues. "I just spoke with the ambassador, there are no problems; apricots were sold out, and today three trucks have entered Food City, they are having no issues," he stated.

Previously, the Armenian ambassador in Russia had reported that trade in fruits imported from Armenia in Moscow has generally been regulated, and promises were made to accept arriving fruits at Food City.

It is noteworthy that just the day before, Toghanyan stated in an interview with RBC that staff from the Armenian embassy visited the Food City market to address the situation concerning Armenian fruits, but they were forcibly removed from the premises.

The Armenian embassy in Russia received reports from exporters of Armenian products indicating that they were banned from trading at Food City. According to Toghanyan, similar information was also received from the drivers of trucks.

The embassy investigated the situation and informed Moscow authorities about the discrepancies, while embassy staff visited the market, Toghanyan reported. He mentioned that the administration of Food City refused to listen to embassy representatives and did not converse with them but forcibly removed them from the area.

"You saw the video that was shared on the internet. It shows how security personnel prevented them [Armenian exporters] from being in the area," Toghanyan stated. He noted that it seems there are legal enclaves in Russia, specifically in Moscow, where Azerbaijani laws are in effect or where the whims of the Azerbaijani leadership are executed.

Toghanyan also pointed out that the issue of isolating their drivers remains pressing. Some trucks have departed for other trading centers, while others remain there, finding ways to sell their goods.

Besides the 50 trucks, there are approximately 150 more vehicles carrying imported goods from Armenia, which are currently at the border with Russia or have already crossed it and are heading towards Food City.

The ambassador stated that he cannot say that the owners of Food City, who are originally from Azerbaijan, specifically God Nasirov and Zarakh Ilyev of the Kievskaya Ploshchad group, are directly involved in the incident. "I cannot say who is involved; I do not have the information or the right. I can only say that our embassy staff were forcibly removed from the trading center's territory by security staff, and the trucks remain blocked," Toghanyan declared.

It is worth mentioning that Food City is owned by a group of companies whose owners are entrepreneurs God Nasirov and Zarakh Ilyev, both originally from Azerbaijan. Reports indicating that trucks with Armenian goods were removed from Food City spread on social networks on Friday, July 17.

Subsequently, the Union of Armenians in Russia discussed the situation with Russian authorities, including the Presidential Administration. Armenian users on Facebook organized a flash mob on social media to help sell Armenian agricultural products, which had been banned from sale at Moscow's Food City. Armenians living in Moscow and nearby regions bought Armenian apricots to prevent the products from spoiling, leading to a multi-kilometer queue in Moscow.

Many people simply arrived to support the Armenian exporters. It should be noted that apricot sales were organized at the Buhta wholesale trading center. This space was offered by Russian entrepreneur Samvel Karapetyan, allowing Armenian exporters to park their trucks free of charge.