Pashinyan: we cannot place our interests below Russia's interests

Armenia will not take actions detrimental to Russia's interests, stated Prime Minister of the republic Nikol Pashinyan.

"In our relations with Russia we will not take any abrupt actions. I have friendly relations with the president of Russia. Since 2018 we have held about 200 telephone conversations. Our attitude toward Russia is very warm," Pashinyan said at a meeting with voters during the election campaign, Sputnik Armenia reports.

According to him, Russia is a superpower and must be treated with respect.

"That is how I treat both Russia and the president and the head of the government of the Russian Federation. I tell them that we have not done and will not do anything to the detriment of Russia's interests. But we also cannot place our interests below the interests of Russia. This is a legitimate position. Yet we will not enter into confrontation with Russia; dialogue at the highest level will continue," Pashinyan stated.

On May 9, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a press conference that Yerevan should decide as soon as possible on the question of participation in the EU or the EAEU, allowing for the possibility of an "intelligent divorce." In turn, Pashinyan told journalists on May 11 that Armenia remains a full member of the EAEU and that a referendum is possible only if an "objective necessity" arises.

Meanwhile, the Russian Foreign Ministry noted that Yerevan had broken its promise not to take steps against Russia, and the silence of Western leaders and the Armenian side regarding Zelensky's threats against World War II veterans, voiced at the summit of the European Political Community in Yerevan, has already been entered into the historical annals. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova added that the current foreign policy course of the Armenian authorities will sooner or later lead to Armenia's irreversible involvement in Brussels's anti-Russian line. According to her, such a scenario will have political and economic consequences for Armenia.