Russia’s Pressure and Europe’s Unconditional Support for Armenia

By KRIKOR KHODANIAN

The final results of Armenia’s parliamentary elections have been published, yet post-election developments continue on both the domestic and international fronts. The opposition considers the vote to have been fraudulent, despite the assessments of international observation missions, which were generally positive.

Russia is the only country openly echoing the claims of the defeated opposition forces. To this day, the Russian president has not congratulated Armenia’s prime minister on his victory. Moscow’s negative attitude toward the expressed will of the majority of the Armenian people is surprising, particularly when official statements claim that “the democratic procedures of free elections have been violated.” It is worth recalling that no election held in Russia during the past several decades has been genuinely competitive. Opposition figures have not been allowed to participate in presidential elections, the independent press has effectively ceased to exist, internet access has been heavily restricted, and Facebook and other social media platforms have been banned. Therefore, describing Armenia’s elections as “undemocratic” sounds highly ironic when measured against Russia’s own standards.

It is clear that Moscow is currently struggling to come to terms with reality. Months before the elections, both well-known and obscure circles in Russia were engaged in spreading disinformation against Armenia’s authorities. This campaign was followed by the open sponsorship of pro-Russian political forces and the investment of tens of millions of dollars in an effort to overthrow the government in Yerevan. Alongside these efforts, Armenians witnessed almost daily threats from high-ranking officials acting as mouthpieces for the Kremlin’s views.

When all these attempts failed to weaken Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s position, Moscow shifted to a policy of economic pressure. One week before the elections, it banned the import of various Armenian products into Russia, hoping that such measures would influence voter sentiment.

On the other hand, collective Europe did not delay in coming to Armenia’s assistance. Conditions were created to allow Armenian agricultural products to reach European markets directly, and financial support was provided to facilitate this process. The European Union is now preparing an assistance package for Armenia in response to Russia’s trade restrictions. All of this is being done simply because Armenia has chosen the path of democracy and seeks to maintain friendly relations with all countries.

Until the 44-day war of 2020, Armenian society was considered the most pro-Russian in the entire former Soviet region. Since then, public attitudes have gradually begun to change. During the forced displacement of the people of Artsakh, Russia, through either its inaction or silent complicity, lost virtually all of the credibility it once enjoyed among Armenians.

Since that time, every step Moscow has taken toward Armenia has been part of a chain of miscalculations that continues to this day. The time has come for Russia to reassess its current policy and attempt to restore its relations with Armenia, first and foremost by earning back the trust of Armenian society. A policy based on threats and pressure has already proven to be a failure.
“MASSIS”