With only four days to go before Armenia’s parliamentary elections, Russia on Wednesday continued to denounce Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s pro-Western foreign policy and urged Armenians to “save” their country.
Meanwhile, Pashinian again downplayed the heightened tensions with Moscow, promising to get the Russians to lift their de facto embargo on key imports from Armenia if his party wins Sunday’s elections.
“Armenia must be saved by the citizens of Armenia, who now have every opportunity to make a choice in favor of their own country in the elections, taking into account national interests,” the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, told journalists.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov likewise said that Armenia “needs to make a choice.”
“We hope that the choice will be historically correct in favor of strengthening traditional, deep, fraternal relations with Russia, which have always benefited and I am sure will continue to benefit the Armenian people,” Russian news agencies quoted Ryabkov as saying.
Citing phytosanitary concerns, Moscow has practically banned over the last two weeks sales of Armenian agricultural products and beverages making up the vast majority of Armenian-made products exported to Russia. The bans will hit hard many Armenian farmers, agribusiness firms and alcohol producers heavily dependent on the Russian market.
Campaigning in the country’s eastern Gegharkunik region, Pashinian indicated that they will be lifted if he wins reelection. He pointed to his “friendly” June 1 phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“We agreed that after the elections I will leave [for Moscow] again and we will meet and resolve all outstanding issues,” he assured local voters.
Moscow extended its import bans to more Armenian fruits and vegetables following Putin’s call with Pashinian. The Armenian premier claimed on Tuesday that his government is already finding new export markets for them in the European Union. He did not elaborate.
In a clearly related development, Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan spoke with EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos by phone on Tuesday. Kos said afterwards that Brussels is already “looking into ways to increase EU support for Armenia” in the face of “growing economic coercion by Russia.”
On Monday, the EU’s foreign policy spokesman, Anouar El Anouni, accused Moscow of trying to “hurt Armenia’s economy” and “influence the outcome” of the upcoming elections. The EU itself was accused by Russia as well as the Armenian opposition of election meddling after deciding earlier this year to send a “hybrid rapid response team” to Yerevan for the ballot.
The Russian sanctions followed Putin’s May 9 statement that Yerevan can no longer strive to join the EU while remaining part of an ex-Soviet trade bloc that gives Armenia tariff-free access to Russia, its number one trading partner. Russian parliament speaker Vyacheslav Volodin on Wednesday again described this policy as “dishonest.”
“Armenia’s leaders are leading it to the abyss,” Volodin charged in an interview with Russian state television.
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