Putin’s demand came on Tuesday on the sidelines of a summit in Bishkek. The Russian president argued that a law on EU accession would be incompatible with membership in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). The Armenian parliament had voted in March 2025 to start the EU accession process.
Pashinyan countered that the time for a final decision had not yet come. “We currently have no alternative,” he said. But Putin insisted: “Then make the choice and close the matter.” In the end, both agreed on a visit by Pashinyan to Moscow to discuss bilateral relations.
Behind the public demands, political scientist Tigran Grigoryan from the Regional Center for Democracy and Security in Yerevan suspects above all Russian economic interests. Armenia is considering awarding the concession for the South Caucasus Railway, a subsidiary of Russia’s RZD, to Kazakhstan, the UAE, or Qatar. In addition, Yerevan is negotiating the construction of a new nuclear power plant with US and French companies, not only with Russia’s Rosatom.
According to Grigoryan, Moscow’s referendum demand is primarily propaganda. It resembles the rhetoric the Kremlin previously used toward Ukraine and Moldova. Polls show that sympathy for Russia in Armenia is at a historic low because of its role in the Karabakh conflict.
Source: www.bbc.com
