The European Union accuses Russia of exerting pressure on Armenia ahead of the legislative elections scheduled for June 7. Brussels asserts that it will continue to support Yerevan in the face of attempts at “coercion” attributed to Moscow.
Russia would try “to harm Armenia’s economy and influence the outcome of the vote“, declared on Monday, June 1, Anouar El Anouni, spokesperson for the European Commission, according to AFP, quoted by News.ro.
Moscow has recalled its ambassador from Armenia.
Diplomatic tensions have escalated after Moscow recalled its ambassador from Armenia “for consultations” on Saturday.
The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs conveyed in a statement quoted by Reuters that Ambassador Sergey Kopirkin was summoned to Moscow “in connection with the measures taken by the Armenian leadership towards approaching the European Union”.
In parallel, the Eurasian Economic Union, led by Russia, announced that it is considering suspending Armenia, after it applied for EU membership and asked Yerevan to organize a referendum on this matter.
As a Caucasian state with approximately 3 million inhabitants, Armenia is an official ally of Russia, but in recent years it has strengthened its relations with the West, despite its economic dependence on Moscow. The differences have intensified after the conflict with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh, a region reclaimed by Baku in 2023, with Yerevan accusing Russia of not providing the expected protection.
The polls for the June 7 elections indicate a lead for the pro-Western Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s party over the pro-Russian opposition. The President of the USA, Donald Trump, has publicly expressed his support for Pashinyan, who has been in power since 2018 and was re-elected in 2021.
Russia, in turn, accuses Western countries of interfering in Armenia’s internal politics to reduce Russian influence in the post-Soviet space.