Russia: Information on the treatment of ethnic Armenians
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 March 1992 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | RUS10409 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Russia: Information on the treatment of ethnic Armenians, 1 March 1992, RUS10409, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ac8f34.html [accessed 17 September 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
According to 1989 census data available in the IRBDC's USSR: Country Profile, Armenians constitute 11.5 percent of the population of the Russian Federation (Oct. 1991, 95). There is no information currently available to the IRBDC indicating whether this figure includes Armenian refugees who arrived in Russia as a result of the 1988 earthquake and/or violence in the Caucasus over the last few years. The World Refugee Survey 1991 indicates that more than 50,000 Armenians migrated to Moscow as a result of the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia (1990, 77). Another source indicates that Russia received 20,000 Armenians in 1990 (Aslanbekov 27 May 1991, 2).
Information specific to the treatment of ethnic Armenians who have been born or resident in Russia for a long period of time is not currently available to the IRBDC. However, a 1990 Radio Free Europe report on internal refugees in the Soviet Union states that "some refugees from the southern parts of the USSR have reported instances of discrimination [in Moscow]" (21 Sept. 1990, 18). Please find this report attached. Further information on the general situation of internal refugees in Russia is available upon request.
According to Tass, Russia and Armenia completed a draft bilateral treaty in August 1991 which, among other provisions, envisages protection of the rights of national minorities (7 August 1991).
There is no further information currently available to the IRBDC on this topic.
Bibliography
Aslanbekov, Sergey (USSR Inter-Republic Rodnye Prostory Association President). 27 May 1991. "Internal Displacement in the Soviet Union: Sources, Problems, Legal Issues."
Immigration and Refugee Board Documentation Centre (IRBDC), Ottawa. October 1991. USSR: Country Profile.
Radio Free Europe. 21 September 1991. Vol. 2, No. 38. Report on the USSR. Jacobs, Margot. "USSR Faces Mounting Refugee Problem."
Tass. 7 August 1991. "Russia, Armenia Complete Drafting Bilateral Treaty."
U.S. Committee for Refugees. 1990. World Refugee Survey 1991. Washington, D.C.
Attachment
Radio Free Europe. 21 September 1991. Vol. 2, No. 38. Report on the USSR. Jacobs, Margot. "USSR Faces Mounting Refugee Problem."