It is very difficult now to separate the issue of a new nuclear power plant in Armenia from the overall context of relations with Russia: Konstantin Simonov

Konstantin Simonov, Director General of the National Energy Security Fund, spoke to Alpha News about the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Armenia on the sidelines of the 19th Verona Eurasian Economic Forum in Istanbul.

“I think it is very difficult now to separate the issue of a nuclear power plant in Armenia from the overall economic and political context of our relations. Why? Because a nuclear project is, after all, a fairly long-term investment. It’s a serious undertaking. And so, unfortunately, we now find ourselves in a situation where we have to decide on the format of our economic cooperation as a whole. That’s why I think the primary question now is what choice Armenia will make. A great deal will depend on that, including the fate of the nuclear project.

You can see that Russia is trying to put the question point-blank, and this is being said constantly. Just the day before yesterday, a report was published on the costs. And as we can see, it is not only a Russian report but one by the partner countries as a whole, and several prime ministers signed it. It is public. It specifically addresses the economic costs of Armenia leaving the Customs Union and the single economic space. It covers gas and more. Overall, it says that if Armenia leaves the single economic space, the economic consequences will be dire. This is the view of Russia, Kazakhstan and a number of other partner countries.

Why am I saying this? Because, you have to agree, if Armenia does decide to leave the single economic space, it would be hard to expect that Russia, of all countries, would build a nuclear power plant in Armenia. Let’s be honest. That is why the issue is becoming more acute now, since the price of gas for Armenia from next year has yet to be decided.

We know the position of the Armenian leadership: they say they don’t want to leave anything, but they’re not giving up cooperation with the European Union either. So this is the key question. Russia is asking it and wants to hear from the prime minister and government of Armenia what choice they have actually made. If the choice is made in favor of the single economic space, the Eurasian Union and the Customs Union, that’s one thing. I think Rosatom could well support Armenia in that case. Again, the choice is of course Armenia’s, but clearly Russia’s offer, which we discussed last year, is quite advantageous. It’s no secret that Rosatom offers its partners favorable terms.

But if Armenia believes it should end this integration process and run off to Europe, that is its choice. We can’t impose anything, but in that case it would probably be strange to expect that this project would best be carried out with Rosatom. Then it would need to look for other partners to implement it,” Simonov said.