Putin and Pashinyan to hold bilateral meeting

On May 8, Russian President Vladimir Putin will have a bilateral meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Russian presidential foreign policy aide Yury Ushakov told reporters.

“Literally the day after the inauguration (May 8), the president hosts the first major international event, namely, the jubilee meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council. This will be followed by a bilateral meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, as well as a traditional friendly dinner for CIS leaders,” Ushakov said. He noted that “this bilateral meeting will be very substantive” as there are many issues for discussion.

“Recently, problematic issues have piled up in the relations between Russia and Armenia, which we expect to be openly discussed between the leaders,” Ushakov said. “You know that Pashinyan himself said in April that relations with Moscow are going through hard times. Recently, contacts between our countries at different levels have noticeably decreased. There is also criticism of both Russia and the CSTO.”