Pashinyan will have to explain the consequences of his policies to the public: Vasily Koltashov

Vasily Koltashov, a political scientist, commented to Alpha News on the prospects for Armenia’s relations with Russia and the possible consequences of Yerevan’s distancing from the EAEU.

“Pashinyan’s misconception is that he believes Russia is incapable of taking any retaliatory measures in response to his actions, his unwillingness to negotiate, and his effective refusal to steer the country along its former course of good relations with Russia.

In reality, however, Pashinyan may face serious problems, since trade between Armenia and Russia is already deteriorating, and this process may continue. In the end, Pashinyan will have to somehow explain this to the public,” Koltashov said.

In the political scientist’s view, claims that Armenia will become wealthier after a break with Russia are a myth.

“Right now he is saying that everything will be fine, that people will become richer and that nothing will need to be explained, because after the destruction of trade ties with Russia, Armenia will allegedly gain new opportunities as the European Union turns to face it.

In my view, this is an obvious myth. The only question is how serious the negative consequences of Pashinyan’s policies will turn out to be, and how decisively Russia will act.

At the same time, Pashinyan himself has not left the Eurasian Economic Union in recent years and, by all appearances, is in no hurry to do so. He continues to enjoy the benefits of the EAEU while doing virtually nothing to develop this integration body and, as his critics contend, only undermining its work.

As a result, sooner or later he will have to be held accountable for this, especially since, as far as one can tell, the leaders of other EAEU member states are now insisting on holding a referendum on this issue in Armenia. Pashinyan, however, has no desire to hold such a referendum,” Koltashov concluded.