Putin meets Pashinyan for the first time since Armenia’s latest election and asks him to choose soon: the EU or the EAEU

Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Bishkek. It was their first in-person meeting since Armenia’s parliamentary elections in June.During the meeting, Putin again raised the subject of Armenia’s push to join the European Union. He called it “the country’s legitimate right,” but said it “creates complications, including those stemming from membership in the Eurasian Economic Union.”Putin said that “the sooner Armenia decides on the question of joining the EU, the better,” because “Moscow needs to understand how to build the relationship going forward.”Putin also renewed his proposal to “give the people of Armenia a say on joining the EU.” Russia and its allies — Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan — had previously demanded that Armenia hold a referendum on whether to remain in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). In response, Pashinyan said at the time that Armenia was abandoning the idea of holding a referendum on EU membership.Putin and Pashinyan last met in early April, when the Armenian prime minister traveled to Moscow. During that Kremlin meeting, Pashinyan spoke about democracy and freedom of speech, saying that in Armenia, unlike in Russia, “social media is 100% free.” In early June, Armenia held parliamentary elections in which Pashinyan’s Civil Contract party won with more than 49.7% of the vote.In recent years, Pashinyan has consistently pushed for closer ties between Armenia and the European Union. Moscow has responded that it considers simultaneous membership in the EU and the EAEU impossible. Pashinyan, for his part, has said that Armenia will keep working within the EAEU “until the choice between the European Union and the Eurasian Economic Union becomes unavoidable.”The two countries also disagree over membership in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). Pashinyan himself said in late August that he “would be very glad” if Armenia were expelled from the CSTO.At Meduza, we are committed to transparency about our use of artificial intelligence in the newsroom. The story you’re reading was written by one of our living, breathing journalists and translated from Russian using an AI model configured to follow our strict editorial standards. This translation process is the result of extensive testing and refinements to ensure our English-language coverage is timely and accurate. A Meduza editor reviews every draft before publication.If you find any errors in this translation, please contact us at [email protected].To read Meduza’s exclusive content in English, please subscribe to our newsletter.