Russian Foreign Ministry: Reduction in trade with Armenia will not cause upheaval

A reduction in Armenia's trade with Russia and other EAEU countries will not have critical consequences for the Union, since Yerevan's share in overall trade turnover is small.

This was stated by Mikael Agasandyan, director of the First CIS Countries Department of Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"This does not lead to any critical upheavals, since Armenia's share in Russia's foreign trade is not so high, and Yerevan's trade turnover with Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan is insignificant," Agasandyan said in an interview with RIA Novosti.

He emphasized that the restrictions being imposed on individual goods are intended to ensure the supply of safe products in accordance with the EAEU's sanitary and phytosanitary requirements. According to the diplomat, oversight by supervisory agencies at border crossing points is provided for by the treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union.

As of June 12, Rosselkhoznadzor restricted the import of all quarantined products from Armenia and their transit through Russia to other EAEU countries. The agency explained these measures by the lack of sufficient quality control and traceability of supplies among Armenian producers; in order for the restrictions to be reconsidered, Yerevan must present the results of inspections and a plan for eliminating violations.

In March 2025, Armenia's parliament approved a law on beginning the process of the country's accession to the European Union, and in April the document was signed by President Vahagn Khachaturyan. Russian President Vladimir Putin previously pointed out that a country's simultaneous participation in the customs unions of the EU and the EAEU is impossible.