The Kremlin announced that Vladimir Putin and Nikol Pashinyan spoke by phone today. Putin congratulated Pashinyan on his birthday and the two discussed the results of last week’s meeting of the Eurasian Economic Union in Kazakhstan.
There, the Russian president called on the Armenian prime minister to convene a referendum on Yerevan’s accession to the European Union as soon as possible and reminded that possible membership in the Community makes it impossible for the country to remain in the Eurasian Economic Union. At the same time, the Russian authorities imposed a ban on the import of a number of goods from Armenia, and the Russian ambassador in Yerevan was summoned to Moscow for consultations.
In a video published on social networks, Nikol Pashinyan said that relations with Russia are in a “phased transformation”. He expressed hope that “the new relations with Moscow will be successful because bilateral relations are open and sincere.”
Meanwhile, the European Union has accused Russia of trying to damage the Armenian economy and influence the country’s parliamentary elections, which are scheduled for Sunday, June 7.
