Armenia is not Kremlin’s ally in Ukraine war, says PM
- 19 February, 02:32
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashniyan has said that his country is not Russia’s ally in Moscow’s war of invasion in Ukraine.
"I have long been saying that regarding the Ukrainian issue Armenia is not Russia’s ally. This is our sincere position. It’s painful that we cannot influence the situation. The Ukrainian people are our friendly people," Pashinyan said at a meeting with Armenian diaspora representatives in Germany where he was on a visit for the Munich Security Conference.
The prime minister recalled the Almaty declaration of 1991, according to which 13 former Soviet republics, including Russian and Ukraine, recognize each other’s territorial integrity and borders. “The same logic works regarding the Ukrainian issue. The declaration covers all. And if we ruin it everything may be ruined," Pashinyan stressed.
Nikol Pashinyan made similar remarks during his interview with Britain's Daily Telegraph last week. The prime minister told the publication that Yerevan did not not stand alongside Moscow as an ally from the outset of Russia's February 2022. "I said, in the Ukraine situation, we are not Russia's ally. And that's the reality," Pashinyan told the daily.
Armenia’s ties with its historical ally Russia have steadily deteriorated since its defeat in the war with its arch-enemy Azerbaijan in 2020. Armenia has blamed Russia for failing to protect it, with Pashinyan suggesting that his country will review military partnership with Russia.
