Putin congratulates Pashinyan on his birthday and says Moscow wants to develop ties with Yerevan — even as the Kremlin does the opposite
Russian President Vladimir Putin sent birthday congratulations to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, the Kremlin’s website said.
“Relations between our countries and peoples have traditionally been friendly in nature. And we are interested in their further progressive development. I would like to wish you health, well-being, and success,” the message read.
Recently, relations between Russia and Armenia have deteriorated sharply. Moscow accuses Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government of pursuing a pro-Western course. In response to Yerevan’s attempts to draw closer to the European Union, Russia has begun imposing restrictions on imports of Armenian goods.
In late May, at a press conference following the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) summit, Putin stated that the “crisis” in Ukraine had begun with a situation resembling what is now happening in Armenia: “I have already mentioned this. The crisis in Ukraine began at some point with attempts to bring Ukraine into the EU. We were not against it.” Shortly afterward, Alexander Lukashenko made a similar statement, urging the people of Armenia to be “very careful” when choosing between the Eurasian Union and Europe, so as not to “repeat what happened in Ukraine.”
On May 29, the authorities of Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan issued a joint statement demanding that Armenia hold a referendum to decide whether the country would remain in the EAEU. The following day, Russia recalled its ambassador to Armenia for consultations.
Parliamentary elections will be held in Armenia on June 7. According to Reuters, Russian officials have in recent months been discussing a plan to send Armenian citizens living in Russia back home to vote against Pashinyan’s rivals in the parliamentary elections.
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