French President Emmanuel Macron has defended his support for Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, stressing the need to distinguish between foreign interference and openly expressed political positions.

Speaking at a press conference following his meeting with Pashinyan, Macron responded to a question from a French journalist who recalled his earlier remarks on alleged Russian interference in Armenia’s elections and asked whether his support for Pashinyan could also be considered interference.

Macron said it is necessary to distinguish “foreign interventions that try to manipulate democratic life” from “political positions that are openly taken.”

“I undertake this support. I support this colleague of mine, whom I have trusted for eight years, as I did when supporting Moldovan President Maia Sandu, who was facing a non-European alternative. I fully undertake this decision to defend Europe,” he stated.

He emphasized that such support differs fundamentally from covert actions aimed at destabilizing democratic institutions.

“This is not the same as influences involving manipulation of information through the media or attempts to undermine the rule of law through the dissemination of false information,” Macron said, adding that such actions are carried out “through foreign agents on the orders of Moscow” with the aim of falsifying democracy.

“I voice my arguments, I participate in democracy as the President of France. I do not falsify. That is the difference, and it is important to remember that,” he added.

Responding to the same question regarding Armenia’s rapprochement with the European Union, Pashinyan reiterated his previously stated position.

“I answered this question in my speech in the European Parliament in 2023. Armenia is ready to be as close to the EU as the EU deems possible,” he said.