Armenia is officially an ally of Moscow, but the country has been strengthening ties with the European Union for many years, as it is disappointed that Russia, in its opinion, did not defend it during conflicts with neighboring Azerbaijan.
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This Caucasus country froze its membership in the Russian-led military alliance, the Collective Security Treaty Organization, in 2024, and last year passed a law declaring its intention to seek EU membership, further angering Russia.
Armenia remains a member of the Eurasian Economic Union – the Russian-led customs union.
In a joint statement issued at a high-level meeting in Kazakhstan, Russian President V. Putin and the leaders of Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan warned that Armenia’s bid to join the EU poses a “great risk” to the economies of the Eurasian Economic Union member states.
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“We support the position that a national referendum on joining the European Union or remaining in the Eurasian Economic Union should be held in the Republic of Armenia as soon as possible,” the statement said.
Armenia has not yet commented on this statement.
Under Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Armenia officially follows a strategy he calls diversification, under which the landlocked country seeks to maintain ties with both Russia and the West.
In April, V. Putin warned N. Pashinyan that Armenia cannot be a member of both the EU and the Russian-led customs bloc.
