Yerevan is hosting the 8th summit of the European Political Community (EPC), an association of EU member states and their partners. Armenia became the second post-Soviet country after Moldova to host the ENP summit. Having declared its task to strengthen the unity of Europe, the ENP, created at the height of the Ukrainian conflict, acquired a clear anti-Russian orientation. One of the main guests of the summit, which brought together the heads of state and government of about 50 countries, as well as the leadership of the EU and NATO, was President Zelensky, who threatened Moscow with a drone attack on Victory Day on May 9.
The two-day summit of the European Political Community, which opened in Yerevan, is held under the motto “Building the future: unity and stability in Europe.”
One of the first European leaders to approach Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on May 4 along the red carpet of the Karen Demirchyan Sports and Concert Complex was French President Emmanuel Macron.
Having put forward exactly four years ago, in May 2022, the idea of creating an ENP to establish an informal dialogue between the two echelons of Europe – the EU member states and their European partners, for many years President Macron also remained the main lobbyist for Armenia in the European Union and, in addition, demonstratively supported Yerevan in its conflict with Baku. Conveying to Pashinyan the apologies of his wife Brigitte, who was unable to come to Yerevan, President Macron assured the host of the summit that she “thinks a lot about Armenia” and is “mentally with the Armenians.”
The demonstrative hugs of the leaders of France and Armenia at the opening of the ENP summit became a prelude to President Macron’s visit to Yerevan scheduled for May 5, which was given the highest status of a state visit in the diplomatic hierarchy.
“We will have the opportunity to hold meetings, in particular, on issues of supporting the independence and sovereignty of Armenia and Moldova. This is Europe, which is building its security and defense,” the French President promised.
Another distinguished guest on the carpet of the ENP summit, who flew up to Nikol Pashinyan with his hand outstretched for a handshake, was NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
Announcing a meeting with the participation of the leadership of the EU and NATO and the leaders of about 50 states and governments of the countries of the Old World, Prime Minister Pashinyan called the tasks of the 8th ENP summit to discuss a wide range of topics – “from hybrid threats and the sustainability of democratic institutions to issues of communications and energy.”
The first day of the forum showed that its organizers managed to achieve the presence of the maximum number of European leaders (even Prince Albert II of Monaco was among the participants).
Most notable was the absence of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who his office said would miss the meeting “due to other commitments.”
The visit to Yerevan of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, representing the North American continent, was somewhat unexpected (the Trump administration, on the contrary, pointedly ignored the ENP summit in Yerevan, despite the Trump Bridge project in the South Caucasus).
According to the press service of Nikol Pashinyan, the Canadian leader, who met with the Armenian prime minister on May 4, “touched on the topic of monitoring carried out jointly with the European Union in the region and expressed readiness to provide support in the issue of holding elections in Armenia.” Another big news related to the visit of the overseas guest was the message that Canada will allocate $200 million for the purchase of American weapons for Ukraine through the PURL program.
“The number of harsh critics and outspoken opponents of Moscow in the capital of Armenia will dazzle the eyes,” Sergei Markedonov, a leading researcher at the Center for Euro-Atlantic Security at the Institute of International Studies of MGIMO of the Russian Foreign Ministry, predicted on the eve of the opening of the summit in his Telegram channel. And he was not mistaken.
Despite declarative calls to discuss key topics of security, development and international cooperation that could unite the countries of the Old World, the ENP summit in Yerevan turned out to be “Ukraine-centric”.
One of the main participants in the discussions was President Zelensky, who arrived in Yerevan on May 3 and managed to hold a number of bilateral meetings even before the official opening of the forum.
Thus, on the eve of the summit, Zelensky was one of the first to meet with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. According to Prime Minister Starmer’s office, the parties discussed cooperation in the defense industry with European partners, as well as peace negotiations and “pressure on Russia.”
Another leader who met with Zelensky before the opening of the summit was Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis. Having called his first meeting with Zelensky “important,” Babis, however, answered negatively when asked about his possible visit to Ukraine. “No, I won’t go to Kyiv,” he said.
Before his appointment as prime minister in December 2025 and after that, Andrej Babis announced his intention to abandon the continuation of the “Czech initiative” to collect ammunition for the Ukrainian Armed Forces in third countries, but later agreed to its continuation without the contribution of Czech funds to it.
The list of European politicians who spoke with Zelensky on the sidelines of the ENP summit also included Prime Ministers of Norway and Finland Jonas Gahr Støre and Petteri Orpo. The topics of the meetings included cooperation in the production of drones and work to strengthen Ukraine’s air defense, as well as support for Ukrainian energy infrastructure.
Even at the opening of the Yerevan forum, Zelensky, in his address to its participants, made his most scandalous statement with threats against the Russian Federation. “Russia has announced a parade on May 9, but there will be no military equipment there. This will be the first time in many years that they cannot afford to have weapons at the parade. And Ukrainian drones could also fly through this parade and even explode over Red Square. This suggests that now they are not nearly as strong as before,” Zelensky said. Previously, Moscow offered Kyiv to declare a truce on May 9, but there was no response.
