Azatutyun.am – Russia and Armenia pledged on Tuesday to strengthen their political, economic and security ties despite sweeping Western sanctions imposed on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.
In a joint statement issued after their talks held outside Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said the “privileged alliance” of their states will grow stronger.
“Vladimir Putin and Nikol Pashinian expressed concern over the use of unilateral restrictive measures by a number of countries,” they said, clearly referring to the Western sanctions. “They expressed their intention to jointly overcome the challenges caused by these measures, including in the field of food and energy security of the two countries, logistics, etc.”
In particular, they said, the two sides will continue to “facilitate the flow of Russian investments in Armenia.”
Visiting Moscow last week, Armenian Economy Minister Kerobian said that Russian-Armenian trade, which totaled over $2.5 billion last year, began falling in March. He said the two governments should work together to “urgently eliminate the causes of the decline and restore growth.”
Because of its close economic links with Russia, Armenia is expected to be significantly affected by the Western sanctions. The Central Bank of Armenia (CBA), the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have forecast that the Armenian economy will barely grow this year.
In another veiled reference to the conflict in Ukraine, Putin and Pashinian expressed serious concern over “the aggravating situation in the field of international security.”
“In this regard, the Parties intend to further strengthen cooperation in order to counter negative trends in this area,” reads their joint statement.
“The leaders proceed from the premise that no state, union or coalition can or should ensure its security at the expense of the security of other states,” it adds, echoing a Russian argument against Ukraine’s membership in NATO.
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