Russia does not use economic leverage in relations with Armenia, says political scientist

Speaking with Alpha News, Russian political scientist Dmitry Trenin expressed hope that things will not come to the point where Russia begins to use its economic ties with Armenia as a tool of pressure.

“We must say frankly that the increase and expansion of relations between Russia and Armenia certainly serve the interests of Russia. That is, what is being done is not charity; it is a completely pragmatic development of relations between the two countries. Now Armenia is of greater economic importance for Russia than it was before. You spoke about Armenia’s economic dependence on Russia, but I would call it a little differently. The word dependence implies that you instrumentalize this dependence, that is, use it to promote some of your political interests.

However, Russia doesn’t do this. This may be surprising, since this is not usually the case in international relations, but for various reasons, Russia does not use economic leverage in relations with Armenia. It really has great potential, but it prefers to maintain this relationship.

Speaking about the fact that economic and political interests can diverge, they can diverge only up to a certain point. Here, I believe there are risks for Armenia, and they are serious. Under certain conditions, the dividends that the economic ties with Russia bring to Armenia may decrease or come to naught. I hope we do not get to that point. I hope that the Armenian authorities are quite pragmatic in this regard, and they do not want and, in any case, should not want to shoot themselves in the foot.

It is very wrong to jeopardize the current development of economic ties with Russia. Yes, there are some actions—some symbolic gestures or practical actions—that Russia pays attention to and starts asking questions that are not very pleasant for Armenia. Therefore, I hope that things will not come to the point where Russia begins to use its economic ties with Armenia as a tool of pressure,” the political scientist said.