Russian expert: Pashinyan wants to use Russia but move towards West

Nikol Pashinyan is a pro-western politician, and he wants Armenia to use Russia but move towards the West, Russian political expert, head of the Center for Political Studies Sergei Markov said.

He noted that the Armenian prime minister expects Russia’s assistance since he believes Moscow does not provide sufficient support to Yerevan.

“It leads to anti-Russian demonstrations in Yerevan and blackmail from Pashinyan’s side to turn to other organizations and ask France, OSCE, NATO, US, and others for help,” the expert said.

He noted that the EU and France are trying to seize Russia’s initiative in the issue of Karabakh: “Pashinyan is trying to use this card to blackmail Russia. Therefore he wants to meet with President Aliyev in Brussels on December 15.”

According to Markov, the move sparked outrage in Russia since on November 9, Pashinyan rejected the meeting to be mediated by Russian President Vladimir Putin but agreed to meet with EU’s mediation.

“He decided to soften everything and meet with the counterparts in Sochi ahead of the meeting in Brussels, but he was obliged to hold this meeting to soothe Russia’s anger,” Markov said, adding that for Azerbaijan and Armenia to sign a peace agreement, Yerevan must recognize the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan on a diplomatic level.