‘South Caucasus and Armenia-US relations will be on the periphery of the Trump administration’s interests’: Denis Denisov
January 23 2025, 11:05
Speaking with Alpha News, Denis Denisov, an expert at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, commented on the US-Armenia strategic partnership agreement and possible changes in US foreign policy under Donald Trump.
“Lavrov made his position regarding this agreement quite clear. And this means that it is necessary to look at the specific actions of the parties. What will happen after the signing? If this document remains just a symbol, a formality for the two countries, and nothing happens in bilateral relations, this will be a completely different situation. If the US decides to significantly intensify its efforts to involve Armenia in its zone, so that bilateral relations reach a new level related to security, political, and economic aspects, then this will already affect the general situation in the Caucasus as a whole and relations with Russia. But let’s go back to Lavrov’s assessment, where he suggests watching what will actually happen after this agreement,” Denisov noted.
According to the expert, the South Caucasus region will not be a priority for the Trump administration.
“For Trump and his administration, the South Caucasus region is not a priority. We know Trump’s key foreign policy interests, and Armenia is not among them, so there is a feeling that for now the South Caucasus region and Armenia-US relations will be on the periphery of US interests. We understand perfectly well that now the US will be dealing with the Ukrainian issue, the Middle East issue, immigrants, and so on. For now, we cannot say that something will drastically change in US relations with the countries of the region and, in particular, with Armenia,” Denisov concluded.