‘Armenian leadership needs to show that its foreign policy has changed’: expert on Mirzoyan’s refusal to attend CIS meeting

Speaking with Alpha News, political scientist Dmitry Rodionov commented on Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan’s refusal to attend the meeting of the foreign ministers of the CIS.

“This fits into the general pattern of the policy, which consists of a gradual separation from Russia. It is clear that, first of all, we are talking about the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) as actually functioning structures. The CIS structure itself was created solely to soften the separation of the former Soviet republics from each other. Within its framework, a number of agreements were adopted that are valid for all participants,” Rodionov said.

“It is not at all surprising that, amid the general trend of breaking ties with Russia, Armenia is also trying to abstract itself from the CIS, which in the public consciousness is presented as a certain structure controlled by Russia. It is a rather symbolic step for all countries that are leaving the CIS and even leaving this organization—a step toward even greater separation from Russia. But that’s exactly the point. The Armenian leadership needs to show that its foreign policy has changed; now there is a reorientation from the Eurasian vector, pro-Russian, to the Western vector. Therefore, they consider participation in various formats that are created and directed by Russia inappropriate,” Rodionov concluded.