Russian analyst Stanislav Pritchin told Moskovskij Komsomolets that with his visit to Moscow, Pashinyan is trying to redress the imbalance in the Russia-Azerbaijan-Armenia triangle. According to the expert, the Russian-Azerbaijani relations are improving amid the gradual decline of Armenia’s interests in developing relations with Russia. Pritchin believes that losing Russia as an economic partner would be highly undesirable for Yerevan.
“For Armenia, this is an opportunity for both fundamental growth and for getting revenue from imports. All this may come to an end, if the Armenian-Russian relations keep deteriorating,” the expert said.
Member of the State Duma Alexander Tolmachev told NEWS.ru that some of Moscow’s partners, who are moving toward the U.S., should be more cautious in their actions. “Nikol Pashinyan has nothing to “sell” to his voters as a victory: His foreign policy has completely failed; the economy is facing serious challenges. Severing ties with the EAEU will not be a shot in the foot, but a shot in the head,” Tolmachev noted.
According to a Eurasianet article, since Azerbaijan forced over 100,000 Armenians to leave Artsakh last September, Armenia has been left without negotiation levers for securing a lasting peace agreement with Baku. In the eyes of the Armenian government, one of such levers is the threat of a full withdrawal from the CSTO. However, Moscow is obviously ready to wait to see whether Pashinyan is bluffing or not. The article also says that the Armenian government is now also facing growing popular discontent, including the protest march.
