US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has suggested that Russia would like to see Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan defeated in future elections due to Armenia’s growing relationship with the United States.

Rubio made the remarks while briefing lawmakers at a hearing of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, where he discussed the TRIPP (Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity) project and broader US engagement in Armenia.

“I think it is pretty clear from open-source information that the Russians are less than pleased with our engagement there,” Rubio said. “There are signs that they want the current prime minister to lose the election, and that this would be a consequence of the growing relationship with the United States.”

The US Secretary of State stressed that Washington is not seeking to undermine Armenia’s sovereignty or force the country to choose between international partners.

“To be clear, we are not there to violate Armenia’s sovereignty. We are not asking them not to be friends with other countries. We simply want to have a relationship with them that is not based solely on peace. Peace is important, but it is only the beginning,” Rubio stated.

His comments come amid deepening ties between Washington and Yerevan, including the recent signing of a comprehensive strategic partnership charter and several cooperation agreements aimed at expanding economic, infrastructure and security cooperation between the two countries.

Moscow has not officially responded to Rubio’s remarks.