There is no data, either at the national or international level, substantiating the presence of political prisoners in Armenia, Prosecutor General Anna Vardapetyan announced in the National Assembly on Wednesday.

She noted that for all those persons who engaged in political activities but are accused, for example, of corruption, this is not a mechanical grounds from the point of view of making a judgment about subjecting these persons to political persecution.

"If we at least look at the accusations of the cases that went to court, they are mostly crimes of a financial and corruption nature and do not contain any political element," said Vardapetyan.

In turn, opposition MP Armenuhi Kyureghyan stated: "Perhaps it is a made-up corruption. But aren't they the result of political persecution? Cases were made up against them for the purpose of political persecution."

Vardapetyan responded: "My position is that no, there is no political motive here. Our work in the prosecutor's office is built exclusively on the facts. And today if you look at the cases that went to court, for example, the episodes that were not included in the charge, you will see that there are cases in which the charge, for example, before going to court, was changed by 80 percent of the financial examination and a document-based study was carried out, an examination was carried out. This is the format of the main work of the prosecutor's office, and the fight against corruption is a priority for us. Unfortunately, the systemic nature of corruption has also assumed political and high positions—in large companies connected to the state—, but the motives are still financial and corruption."