Armenia's current foreign policy course, oriented toward the West, is not unexpected, said Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting with representatives of international news agencies held on the sidelines of the 29th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.
“There is nothing extraordinary about this. The political forces supporting Armenia’s current Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan, have been speaking about this for a long time and have done so openly,” he noted.
Speaking about Armenia’s possible accession to the European Union, the Russian leader emphasized that Moscow expects a referendum to be held on the issue.
“Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan himself recently said that he considers it necessary to hold a referendum on Armenia’s accession to the European Union. We have only one request — do it as soon as possible,” the Russian President said.
Putin also recalled the circumstances surrounding Armenia’s accession to the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). According to him, Russia had supported Armenia’s inclusion in the integration bloc at Yerevan’s own request.
“As for Armenia, Russia insisted, at Armenia’s request, on its accession to the Eurasian Economic Union, bearing in mind that, in terms of a number of economic indicators, Armenia did not fully fit into the overall picture,” the Russian leader added.
