With the team that currently leads Armenia, the ‘point of no return’ has already been passed – Nikolay Silaev

Speaking with Alpha News, Leading researcher at the MGIMO Institute of International Studies Nikolay Silaev commented on relations between Russia and Armenia, the West’s position in the region, and the negotiation process between Yerevan and Baku.

“With the team that currently leads Armenia, the ‘point of no return’ has already been passed. Even if we imagine that the Armenian authorities will completely change their policy, it is unlikely that Moscow will perceive this turn with any trust. Another thing is that the Armenian authorities understand what they are playing with and are trying to take fewer irreversible steps or, at least, not to take big irreversible steps, such as leaving the CSTO and the EAEU and withdrawing the Russian military base, although the border guards have already been withdrawn. The Armenian authorities believe that with such small steps they will go somewhere away from Russia,” Silaev said.

According to the expert, it was the Armenian authorities who orchestrated the crisis in relations between Russia and Armenia.

“This crisis in relations between Russia and Armenia was not orchestrated by Russia but by the Armenian authorities. Therefore, they are responsible for what is happening, and they must make respective decisions. It is completely normal that Moscow does not want to take responsibility for the rupture in relations with Armenia because Moscow is not the one who initiated it,” Silaev emphasized.