Nikol Pashinyan says Armenia’s relations with Russia ‘can no longer be the same’

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has told RFI that his country intends to continue drawing closer to the European Union while maintaining ties with Russia, as Yerevan pursues what he describes as a more balanced and independent foreign policy. Armenia’s relationship with Russia “can no longer be the same as it was before”, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan told RFI in an exclusive interview in Yerevan, as his government seeks closer ties with the European Union without abandoning its longstanding partnership with Moscow. Pashinyan said Armenia was pursuing a policy designed to give the country more political and economic options rather than replacing dependence on one power with dependence on another. His comments come amid a profound reshaping of Armenia’s foreign relations following years of upheaval that have included the 2018 revolution, repeated conflict with neighbouring Azerbaijan and the exodus of the Armenian population from Nagorno-Karabakh in 2023. Armenia PM Pashinyan wins vote, cementing pro-Western shift EU membership At the centre of that shift is Armenia’s steadily deepening relationship with the EU. Pashinyan pointed to the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) signed with Brussels in 2017 and said cooperation had intensified further since 2020. In 2025, Armenia’s parliament passed legislation formally launching a process towards possible EU accession following a citizens’ initiative. “Yes, one of the options is for the Republic of Armenia to become a member of the European Union,” Pashinyan said. But he stressed that membership remained only one possible path and would ultimately depend both on the EU’s own enlargement policy and on the Armenian people. “Our aim in creating alternatives is to enable the Armenian people to decide whether Armenia should remain a member of the Eurasian Economic Union, become a member of the European Union, or join neither,” he said. Whatever the outcome, Pashinyan said Armenia intended to continue reforms aimed at bringing the country closer to EU standards. Even if Armenia ultimately did not join the bloc, he argued, the reforms themselves would strengthen the country. “If, once objectively ready, Armenia does not become a member of the European Union, our country will still come out ahead, as we will then have a state that is fully compliant with European Union standards.” France positions itself at the heart of Armenia’s pivot to Europe ‘We do not want to be dependent on anyone’ The pivot towards Europe has inevitably raised questions over Armenia’s relationship with Russia, which for decades was its principal security partner and remains an important economic partner. But Pashinyan rejected the idea that his government was seeking simply to “free” Armenia from Moscow. “We do not want to be dependent on anyone,” he said. “We do not want to stop depending on A only to depend on B.” Instead, he described his government’s approach as one of diversification. “I once used an expression which initially gave rise to some misunderstandings in Armenia,” he said. “I said that independence consists of replacing dependence on a few with dependence on many.” That principle, he argued, applied not only to diplomacy but also to the Armenian economy. “We want our people to have alternatives. We want our population to have a choice. We also want our tomato growers to have alternatives. We want our drinks producers to have alternatives too.” Pashinyan cited fuel imports as an example, saying Armenia had reduced the concentration of petroleum imports among a small number of companies and suppliers. That diversification, he said, had helped shield the country from recent disruptions affecting energy markets. Armenia election: what the vote could mean for Russia, the West and Azerbaijan Brussels and Moscow Armenia’s efforts to move closer to Brussels have nevertheless prompted warnings from Moscow that Yerevan may eventually have to choose between closer integration with the EU and continued membership of the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union. Pashinyan acknowledged the difficulty of balancing the two relationships, saying that “the role of governments and political leaders is to solve unsolvable equations”. But he ruled out an imminent referendum on EU membership, saying Armenia would first need to submit a formal application – something it has yet to do – and complete further reforms. “Submitting an application simply for the sake of it does not make much sense,” he said, although when asked whether Armenia ultimately intended to apply, he replied: “Yes, amongst other things.” Pashinyan also insisted that worsening ties with Moscow was not Yerevan’s objective. “On the contrary, we wish to develop our relations with Russia,” he said. “One thing must simply be acknowledged: whatever the circumstances and whoever the political leaders may be, our relations with Russia can no longer be the same as they were before.” He also dismissed warnings from Russian political figures that Armenia could become a “second Ukraine”, saying he was convinced such a scenario would not unfold. Azerbaijan lifts Armenia border restrictions, but hurdles to peace remain Peace with Azerbaijan Pashinyan struck an equally confident tone on Azerbaijan, arguing that peace between the two neighbours was already taking shape despite the absence of a formally signed treaty. A peace agreement was initialled and the two countries adopted a peace declaration in Washington on 8 August 2025. Pashinyan also pointed to the absence of deaths or injuries from exchanges of fire along the border for more than two years. In 2024, Armenia and Azerbaijan signed and ratified their first legally binding bilateral agreement, establishing the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration as the basis for border demarcation. “Between Azerbaijan and Armenia, in practice, peace has, to a certain extent, also been established – de jure, peace has been established,” he said. Asked about Armenian prisoners still held in Azerbaijan, missing persons and sporadic border incidents, Pashinyan said such issues did not undermine the wider process. “From 1991 to 2025, we had deaths and injuries every single year,” he said. “Now, for the past two years, we have had no deaths or injuries. Isn’t that a reason to be optimistic?” He also played down a recent incident in which an Azerbaijani soldier crossed into Armenia’s Syunik region and injured an Armenian civilian, saying accidental crossings had occurred repeatedly over the past three decades. “This incident has nothing to do with peace and cannot in any way call peace into question,” he said. For Pashinyan, the broader strategy is one of widening Armenia’s room for manoeuvre – strengthening ties with Europe, maintaining relations with Russia and trying to consolidate peace with its neighbours. This has been adapted from an original interview by RFI's Armenian service in Yerevan