Putin and Pashinian clash over Armenian EU candidacy at SCO summit

The Russian president and the Armenian prime minister had a tense exchange Tuesday on Yerevan's desire to apply for membership in the European Union, incompatible according to Moscow with the Eurasian Union made up of countries from the former USSR, on the sidelines of a summit in Kyrgyzstan. The two men met at the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Kyrgyzstan, in Central Asia, for the first time since the elections in Armenia which confirmed the pivot of this Caucasian country towards the West.

Russian President Vladimir Putin repeated on this occasion Moscow's position according to which Armenia's accession to the European Union "certainly creates difficulties for maintaining its status within the Eurasian Economic Union." He again called on Yerevan to submit its desire to join the EU to a referendum “as quickly as possible”. “We must adjust our trade and economic policies based on these possible decisions,” he said.

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Western turn

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian responded that the adoption last year of a law officially declaring Armenia's intention to apply for membership in the EU made a referendum unnecessary. He said it was premature to talk about Armenia leaving the Eurasian Economic Union. “The adoption of a law initiating the procedure for joining another economic organization effectively amounts to announcing the withdrawal of ours,” Mr. Putin replied.

Under Russian influence since Russia's conquest of the Caucasus in the 19th century, Armenia has in recent months begun a shift towards the West under the leadership of Mr. Pashinian, whose party won the legislative elections in June. The declared ambition of the head of the Armenian government to bring his country into the EU has cast a chill on relations between Yerevan and Moscow, which in retaliation took sanctions against Armenia, of which it is a major trading partner.