Former USSR premier Nikolay Ryzhkov, Armenia’s only non-Armenian national hero, dies

Former premier of the ex-USSR Nikolay Ryzhkov has died. Valentina Matviyenko, Chairperson of the Federation Council of Russia, Telegram reported.

Ryzhkov was the last chairman of the Council of Ministers of the former USSR; his successor, Valentin Pavlov, was already the premier of the USSR. From 1995 to 2003, Ryzhkov was an MP of the Russian State Duma. And for the next 20 years, he represented the Belgorod region at the Federation Council of Russia. In 2023, he put down his respective powers.

Nikolay Ryzhkov was the only national hero of Armenia who was not of Armenian origin. He made a huge contribution to eliminating the consequences of the devastating earthquake that hit Armenia in 1988. This Russian politician was a great friend of Armenia. And after the declaration of independence in 1991, he took an active part in the work of interparliamentary bodies of Armenia and Russia as a member of the Federation Council of Russia.