Armenian Security Council Secretary Alen Simonyan said Armenia is no longer willing to remain dependent on a single gas pipeline as questions grow over a possible increase in the price of Russian gas. He was responding to a question about what the authorities would do if Russia raised the gas price.
According to Armenpress, Simonyan said Armenia is maintaining its earlier position: the country has four neighbors, and if a fifth country offers to supply gas via transit, Yerevan will consider that proposal.
He argued that gas pricing also has a political dimension. “We are not prepared, and will no longer be prepared, to depend on one pipeline, one pressure switch, and we will pursue diversification across all sectors of Armenia’s economy,” Alen Simonyan said.
The Security Council secretary also stressed that the Republic of Armenia is an independent state where the government is formed by the people’s choice. In his view, the country has no conflict that could be used to trigger political processes in Armenia or direct them in a particular way.
“The Republic of Armenia will preserve its sovereignty. Our partners in the Russian Federation also constantly say that this is your sovereign right to decide. The Republic of Armenia has not compromised its interests and will not do so,” he said.
Consumers in Armenia currently pay 143.7 drams per cubic meter of gas. A subsidized tariff of 100 drams is in place for socially vulnerable groups.
In recent days, various Russian officials have also said that if Armenia continues moving toward the European Union, it could lose the opportunity to buy Russian gas on preferential terms.
