Armenia Yerevan will soon begin the process of applying for EU membership. Pashinyan
Responding to Russia's demand to hold a referendum in Armenia on whether to join the Eurasian or European Union, Prime Minister Pashinyan today announced for the first time that Yerevan will soon begin the process of applying for EU membership:
“A referendum makes sense when the initiated process has reached a certain pivotal point and it is possible to reflect on the realism of those prospects, to have a roadmap for how we will move forward, how realistic it is to carry out the necessary reforms for joining the European Union within the specified timeframes. To work on the answers to these questions, Armenia must first submit an official application for membership to the European Union. This is also a process that requires extensive work, and we will likely start this process soon, especially in response to the calls of our EAEU partners,” Pashinyan said.
The leaders of the Eurasian Union adopted a statement in May, setting a deadline for Armenia to decide by December. Shortly after the Prime Minister's announcement, Moscow responded that “deep contradictions” would arise, which would primarily harm Armenia itself:
“After submitting the application, Armenia must begin to align its legislation in various areas - trade, phytosanitary, customs, and other areas - with European norms, the standards of the European Union. These norms do not coincide with the norms that operate here and in the EAEU,” said Dmitry Peskov, press secretary of the President of Russia.
