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Ulviyya Poladova

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The US Embassy in Armenia has a staff of between 2,500 and 3,000 people, a figure that raises questions given the country's small size, Russian Deputy Secretary of the Security Council Alexey Shevtsov told in an interview with RIA Novosti.

"In Armenia, by the way, the US Embassy has a staff of 2,500 to 3,000 people. What does that mean for a small country like Armenia? I don't know. Maybe Armenia is a very beautiful country with excellent cuisine, and perhaps American citizens simply enjoy living and working there. Maybe that's the reason, or perhaps there is another one," Shevtsov said.

However, he did not specify the data on which his estimate of the diplomatic mission's staff size was based.

Moscow has repeatedly expressed concern over the expansion of the US presence in Armenia and the deepening of Yerevan's security cooperation with Washington. The Russian side has criticized joint Armenian-American military exercises, as well as the activities of the European Union Monitoring Mission along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.