Ex-Armenian Ambassador To Russia: Lukashenko And Putin Should Get Used To This
1- 6.05.2026, 17:42
- 2,060
Yerevan is going to Europe.
Armenian Parliament Speaker Alen Simonyan said that Yerevan would not allow the country to be turned into a "province" and would not be governed like Belarus. Minsk responded to these words with a nervous Foreign Ministry tirade, which only emphasized the painfulness of comparing Lukashenko's regime to a vassal of the Kremlin.
Why did Alen Simonyan's words hit Lukashenko's regime so painfully?
The website Charter97.org asked Stepan Grigoryan, one of the leaders of the democratic movement in Armenia in the 1990s, former deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the republic and former Armenian ambassador to Russia, to comment on what is happening:
- First, I would like to consider the two statements of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus in one context. Alain Simonyan said these words about two or three days before the summit. You know, the European Political Community summit was held in Yerevan on May 4, and the EU-Armenia summit was held on May 5.
Alain Simonyan made this statement even before the summit, in connection with the fact that Russia started to impose very tough trade restrictions against Armenia. I won't go into details now, it's a separate topic, but it was a strong attempt to punish Armenia.
For example, we have Jermuk Group, a company that supplies Jermuk mineral water to Russia. More than one and a half million bottles were recalled. This is a serious sanction. There are other restrictions related, in particular, to the Wildberries company. And Alen Simonyan reacted absolutely adequately.
He clearly said that Armenia will not become a province. We will do everything to prevent this from happening. Why does Russia act this way? It actually says: do not accept the European Union summit in Yerevan. If you do, we will punish you.
And the second part of his statement was that we will not allow to do to Armenia what Russia is doing to Belarus.
Why am I conflating this with what happened at the summit? Because the Armenian government officially invited Svetlana Tikhanovskaya there. This shows Armenia's position on democracy and autocrats who persecute democrats.
The Belarusian Foreign Ministry reacted very painfully to both of these events - Alain Simonyan's statement and Tikhanovskaya's participation in the summit. They summoned the Charge d'Affaires of Armenia in Minsk and, roughly speaking, told him off, handed him a note of protest. Later, the second reaction followed - about Alen Simonyan's words. It was said that it was an "incorrect statement", that "Belarus is independent, that it allegedly "conducts strategic partnership with Russia on its own".
But such tales can be told to anyone, but not to us. Everyone knows that Lukashenko is being externally managed by the Kremlin. It's not such a big secret.
Another thing is important: the Belarusian Foreign Ministry reacted very painfully to both events. But they deserve that criticism. And, of course, I welcome the fact that the Armenian government has found the strength and integrity to take this stance.
- European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky gathered in Yerevan in a country that Moscow has long considered an ally. Was this summit a personal slap in the face to Putin and does it mean that Armenia is already irreversibly leaving the Russian orbit? How can relations between Yerevan and Moscow develop now?
- Thank you for the question. There is a very important part in it - the irreversibility of Armenia's movement towards European integration.
This is a question we all have. We support the policy of our government towards European integration, but many supporters of this course say that it is not enough to freeze the participation in the Collective Security Treaty, we should leave the CSTO. Because if you do not leave the CSTO, theoretically you can run back. But I assert: after the Armenian government held the summit of the European Political Community, after President Zelensky came to Armenia, it is impossible to make steps backwards. These events make the process of movement towards European integration irreversible.
Russia's reaction is already very tough. If you look at the last two or three days, almost all materials are devoted to criticizing the Armenian government and Nikol Pashinyan personally.
Two days ago Dmitry Medvedev, the former president of Russia, actually personally insulted Pashinyan and Zelensky on social networks. This shows how painfully things were taken in Russia.
But my point is different: it's time for them to get used to it. Armenia is no longer Russia's ally. Russia betrayed Armenia in 2020 and 2023, did not protect it.
No protection means you are not allies. And now you should not take offense and say: how can Armenia, an ally, make such steps? We have not been allies for a long time - since 2020. Russia itself made this decision and de facto broke off allied relations with Armenia. So let them get used to such steps of the Armenian government.
- What will happen to the CSTO and the EAEU now? Could Putin and Lukashenko end up staying there virtually alone?
- I would separate these two organizations. Both the CSTO and the Eurasian Economic Union are dominated by Russia. But the CSTO is related to military-strategic security.
Armenia has frozen its participation here and is not going to return. Although it would be more correct to withdraw from this organization. Such a step can lead to a chain reaction. I am sure that after that the Central Asian countries that are members of the CSTO will also reconsider their participation. And then you assume correctly: Russia can stay there only with Belarus.
But the situation in the Eurasian Economic Union is a bit different. Yes, Armenia says: if Russia imposes trade sanctions, we will withdraw. But at the moment Armenia is not ready for a quick exit, because the share of trade with Russia is very large - almost 40%.
A significant part of our business is tied to the Russian market. Therefore, I do not see the prospect that the Armenian government will quickly start withdrawing from the EAEU.
But another thing is possible: Russia itself will start imposing sanctions against Armenia, not allowing Armenian goods to enter its market - and it has already started to do so. Then Armenia will be forced to withdraw. But the dependence here is still strong.
I will cite one important figure. Armenia has started to diversify both military and energy cooperation. Russia's share in Armenian military cooperation has fallen from 90% to 10%. That is, we are no longer dependent on Russia in this sphere.
In the energy sector, too, a lot has changed. Solar energy now accounts for about 20%. The dominance of Russian gas is gradually decreasing. But in trade, the Russian influence is still very large, and of course, it should be gradually reduced.
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