Armenian PM refuses Russia's call for EAEU exit referendum

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has rejected a call from Russia and its allies to hold an immediate referendum on whether Armenia should leave the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) to join the European Union. The refusal, delivered in a video address on Monday, comes amid escalating diplomatic and economic pressure from Moscow just days before Armenia’s parliamentary elections on June 7.

The demand for a referendum was issued in a joint statement by the leaders of Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan following an EAEU summit in Kazakhstan. The statement urged Armenia to clarify its geopolitical direction, warning that its pursuit of closer ties with the EU posed risks to the economic security of the Eurasian bloc. Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated that membership in both the EU and the EAEU is impossible.

In his response, Pashinyan described the call for an immediate referendum as unreasonable and illogical. He stated that Armenia would continue operating within the EAEU until a choice between the two blocs becomes unavoidable. He argued that holding a referendum is not justified until Armenia has officially applied for EU membership or is close...