Parliamentary elections will be held in Armenia next Sunday, June 7. Russia has repeatedly criticized the country’s current Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan because, according to the Kremlin, Yerevan has chosen a pro-Western path. Armenia began to cooperate more actively with the European Union and the United States after Russia effectively refused to support it in the conflict with Azerbaijan. Now Moscow is demanding that pro-Russian businessman Samvel Karapetyan, who is under house arrest, be allowed to participate in the elections in Armenia. In the run-up to the vote, Russia is increasing its pressure on Yerevan, for example, by banning the import of various Armenian products and threatening, threatening, threatening. We briefly described how Russia is trying to influence Armenia.
- Rosselkhoznadzor has limited the import of Armenian strawberries, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, herbs, some brands of cognac, wine, Jermuk mineral water, flowers and fish.
- Russian Energy Minister Sergei Tsevilev has threatened to halt supplies of natural gas, petroleum products and rough diamonds if Armenia continues the EU accession process.
- The authorities of Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan have demanded that Armenia hold a referendum on whether the country will remain in the Eurasian Economic Union () or seek to join the European Union. Nikol Pashinyan refused to hold such a referendum, considering that this issue is still theoretical.
- Russian President Vladimir Putin, after the Eurasian Economic Union summit in Astana, threatened: If Armenia begins to switch to EU standards, Moscow will “limit” all economic integration with Yerevan, and Armenian citizens will have to obtain patents to work in Russia. Putin added that the “crisis” in Ukraine once began due to Kiev’s attempts to join the European Union.
- Russian Foreign Ministry, Russian Ambassador to Armenia Sergei Kuperkin for consultations “concerning the steps of the Armenian leadership towards rapprochement with the European Union, which are harmful to interaction within the Eurasian Economic Union.”
- Putin called Pashinyan on his birthday – the Armenian Prime Minister turned 51 on June 1. During the conversation, the President of the Russian Federation spoke, incl to talk On the results of the Eurasian Economic Union Summit in Astana. In a telegram sent to Pashinyan, Putin said that Russia is interested in further developing friendly relations with Armenia.