Yekaterinburg coldness. Why did Moscow refuse “fraternal” rhetoric?

Today, Nikol Pashinyan visited the Russian Federation, specifically Yekaterinburg, where he participated in the 16th International Industrial Exhibition “Innoprom”. This visit is particularly noteworthy in that it is Nikol Pashinyan’s first trip to the Russian Federation after the elections in Armenia.

It is taking place against the background of apparent coldness in bilateral relations and open political criticism from Moscow. The complexity of the situation is also evidenced by the fact that the Kremlin has not yet officially congratulated Pashinyan on his victory in the elections, which is an indication of a clear political stance and dissatisfaction.

At the same time, the visit takes place in the context of indirect economic restrictions applied to Armenia, which adds additional tension to the bilateral agenda. Perhaps, Pashinyan’s participation in the “Innoprom” industrial exhibition is an attempt to use the economic platform to smooth political sharp corners and demonstrate the will to unbreak economic ties with Russia, even when the political dialogue is in crisis. His call to Mishustin the other day before this visit was a similar experience, during which a number of issues on the bilateral agenda were discussed. This is also a unique circumstance in Armenian-Russian relations, because Pashinyan usually communicates with the Russian president, but due to some reasons, Pashinyan had to contact Mishustin.

However, a bilateral meeting between Mishustin and Pashinyan took place within the framework of the “Innoprom” exhibition. At the beginning of the meeting, Mishustin emphasized that this is Pashinyan’s first foreign visit after the elections, and Russia is looking forward to the development of relations with the new government formed after the elections. “Moscow expects further development of Russian-Armenian relations in the spirit of friendship, neighborliness, mutual respect and consideration of each other’s interests,” Mishustin said. He also emphasized that it is important that the Armenian government continues to create a comfortable environment for Russian investors. According to him, Moscow expects that their rights and legal interests will be respected.

For his part, Pashinyan said that both before and after the elections, they are committed to the further development of relations with Russia. “And, of course, we are interested in our participation in the EAEU and ensuring that the mechanisms provided for in the EAEU agreement work as intended. I think that this is in the interests of the further development of EAEU,” said Pashinyan. According to him, some problematic points have appeared recently, and I hope that we will discuss and solve them.

He emphasized that Armenia is constructively committed to discussing and clarifying all issues and nuances. “I hope that as a result of today’s negotiations, we will be able to solve specific issues,” he expressed confidence.

It is noteworthy that, despite the bilateral assurances, Mishustin’s attitude and the tone of his statements at the meeting with Pashinyan were quite restrained, if not to say, markedly official. The Russian side avoided warm wording, emphasis on traditional alliance closeness, or friendly personal remarks usually characteristic of such high-level meetings. Instead, Mishustin’s speech was dominated by dry diplomatic statements and direct references to the protection of the interests of Russian capital, which proves once again that Moscow now prefers to talk to Yerevan not from an emotional or “fraternal” but from a strictly pragmatic position.

This pronounced coldness and official dryness were especially noticeable against the background of another meeting of the Russian Prime Minister on the same day. In the conversation with his colleague from Belarus, Mishustin had a completely different attitude. he did not hide his affection, emphasized how happy he was to welcome the Belarusian Prime Minister and his “friends” in Yekaterinburg, and personally conveyed wishes to the President of Belarus on behalf of himself and Vladimir Putin, and then heartily congratulated him on the Independence Day of Belarus. The allied atmosphere was completely absent from the Armenian-Russian negotiation table.

This difference in communication style and emphasis is extremely telling. Of course, relations between Moscow and Minsk are unique in nature, but the strategic alliance between Armenia and Russia has not been canceled on paper. Simply, this meeting proved once again that the former “spirit” of those relations no longer exists. Moscow does not speak to Yerevan with traditional warmth. And this visit of Pashinyan, as a matter of fact, marked the beginning of a new, highly pragmatic, cold and clarification phase of mutual demands in Armenian-Russian relations.

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