“Armenia’s euro-aspirational drive concerns us greatly:” Overchuk

The legal conflict arising from EAEU member Armenia’s euro-aspirational drive is a working situation and should be treated as such. This was stated by Alexey Overchuk, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, in an interview with TASS on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

According to him, as far as EAEU law is concerned, it currently makes no provision for the exclusion of a member state or the suspension of a member’s participation in the union’s work. “This is a matter that needs to be examined purely from a legal standpoint, because we have encountered a certain legal conflict that must be addressed. This too should be approached very calmly, we will work through it calmly. Incidentally, I think the Armenians will also take part in this work, because they too, as members of the Eurasian Economic Union, understand that there are certain gaps in EAEU law that need to be closed. This is a normal working situation,” Overchuk noted.

“But again, we are very concerned about this euro-aspirational drive, which, in our view, has the potential to cause serious harm to Armenia, to the Eurasian Union, and to businesses in our countries, which are currently in a state of uncertainty: what should we do? That, in essence, is the whole question. It is a working situation, and it should be treated as such,” the Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation emphasized.