Putin, Pashinyan Discuss Bilateral Relations and Regional Issues During a Phone Conversation

YEREVAN (RFE/RL) — Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan discussed bilateral relations and regional security during a telephone conversation on Monday.

The Kremlin reported that the two leaders spoke about the “development of Russian-Armenian cooperation as well as regional problems.” It did not elaborate.

Pashinyan’s press office also gave no details in a virtually identical statement on the phone call. “The interlocutors discussed various issues on the agenda of Russian-Armenian allied relations,” it said.

Putin and Pashinyan most recently met in Moscow on December 27. The talks focused, among other things, on a new price of Russian natural gas delivered to Armenia.

The two men held further discussions on the issue by phone in the following days. Russia’s Gazprom giant announced a 10 percent rise in its gas price for Armenia on December 31.