Armenia Hosts Historic EU Summit       05/05 06:19

   

   YEREVAN, Armenia (AP) -- Armenia hosts its first bilateral summit with the 
European Union on Tuesday, a landmark diplomatic moment for the Caucasus 
Mountains nation that has formally declared its ambition to join the bloc and 
is cautiously loosening its ties with longtime ally Russia.

   The EU-Armenia summit in Yerevan follows the eighth gathering of the 
European Political Community, or EPC, which brought dozens of European leaders 
to the Armenian capital on Monday to address European defense issues and the 
Iran war.

   Meanwhile, Tuesday's bilateral meeting saw Armenia and the EU sign a 
connectivity partnership to strengthen economic ties and deepen security 
cooperation.

   The two events underscore how Armenia is seeking to turn westward and shed 
Russia's influence. Armenia's relations with Moscow, its longtime sponsor and 
ally, have grown increasingly strained since 2023, when neighboring Azerbaijan 
fully reclaimed the Karabakh region and ended the decadeslong rule by ethnic 
Armenian separatists.

   Armenian authorities accused Russian peacekeepers who were deployed to the 
region of failing to stop Azerbaijan's onslaught. Moscow, busy with the war in 
Ukraine, rejected the accusations, arguing that its troops didn't have a 
mandate to intervene.

   The war was "a belated demonstration that Russia is dangerously unreliable 
as a partner," Richard Giragosian, director of the Regional Studies Center in 
Yerevan, told The Associated Press.

   Pursuing ties with Europe

   Since then, the government of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has 
pursued closer ties with the West, a move welcomed by the 27-nation EU.

   The opening ceremony of the EU-Armenia summit on Tuesday saw European 
Council President Antnio Costa walk the red carpet side by side with Pashinyan 
and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, while a military band 
played in front of Armenian and EU flags.

   In her opening statement, von der Leyen said that Europe was ready to aid 
Armenia in becoming a regional hub for global trade routes, including the 
building of physical infrastructure.

   "We're ready to invest in the local energy production and the energy links 
across the Black Sea, and we are ready to connect your booming digital scene to 
Europe's digital market and turn Armenia's position at the heart of this region 
into a motor of growth," she said.

   The new EU-Armenia connectivity partnership will focus on strengthening 
transportation, energy and digital links. Meanwhile, EU investments in Armenia 
are expected to reach 2.5 billion euros ($2.9 billion) under its global gateway 
infrastructure program, both sides said in a joint statement.

   "Today's EU-Armenia summit sends a clear signal of the EU's firm commitment 
to deepen our relations with Armenia, and to strengthen cooperation across many 
new areas," Costa said. "Bringing Armenia and its people closer to the European 
Union."

   Symbolic moves

   The EU, rather than the United States, has stepped into the vacuum left by 
Russia, Giragosian said.

   "EU engagement is much more prudent and much more productive than the U.S. 
becoming involved, simply because European engagement is less provocative to 
Russia over the longer term," he said.

   In 2025, Armenia's parliament passed a law formally declaring the country's 
intention to seek EU membership.

   However, Giragosian described Tuesday's summit as "a focus on deepening the 
preexisting relationship" rather than a step toward candidacy, referencing the 
Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement that has governed EU-Armenia 
ties since fully taking effect in 2021.

   "The symbolic significance is much greater as a message to Russia," he said.

   Armenia has also taken other symbolic steps. It joined the International 
Criminal Court in 2023, a move that Moscow condemned as an "unfriendly step." 
The court has issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin, 
accusing him of personal responsibility for the abductions of children from 
Ukraine.

   Armenia also froze its participation in the Moscow-led Collective Security 
Treaty Organization in 2024.

   However, Armenia remains a member of the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union, 
or EEU, a single market allowing the free movement of goods, capital and labor. 
The organization also includes Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan -- and Putin 
has made the trade-offs plain.

   Speaking at talks with Pashinyan in Moscow earlier this year, Putin warned 
that Armenia couldn't simultaneously belong to both the EEU and the EU, noting 
that Yerevan currently receives Russian natural gas at prices far below 
European market rates. Pashinyan acknowledged the incompatibility, but said 
that Armenia could, for now, combine EEU membership with deepening EU 
cooperation.

   Pashinyan, who has been in office since 2018 and faces a parliamentary 
election in June, stands to benefit politically from the international profile 
of the European meetings. Giragosian said that Pashinyan's government is likely 
to be reelected largely by default, with the opposition unable to offer a 
credible alternative program.

   But Giragosian warned against framing Armenia's foreign policy as purely a 
pivot from Russia to the West.

   "Armenia is also pivoting beyond the black and white zero-sum game 
paradigm," he said, pointing to significant diplomatic investment in Asia, 
including with Japan, South Korea and China. "This is not about replacing 
Russia with the West. This is much more innovative, much more sophisticated."

   Heightened tensions

   The summit also comes at a moment of diplomatic strains between Azerbaijan 
and the EU. Azerbaijan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the EU ambassador 
last week to protest a European Parliament resolution demanding the release of 
Armenian prisoners of war and criticizing the treatment of Armenians in 
Karabakh. Lawmakers in Azerbaijan subsequently voted to suspend all cooperation 
with the European Parliament.

   Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, who addressed the EPC conference via 
video link, accused the European Parliament and the Parliamentary Assembly for 
the Council of Europe, or PACE, of "double standards" for placing sanctions on 
Azerbaijan's delegation.

   There were also protests outside the EPC summit venue, which was surrounded 
by tight security. Demonstrators held photos of Armenian prisoners being held 
in Azerbaijan.

   Opposition leader Aram Sargsyan, head of the Democratic Party of Armenia, 
told the Armenian Press Agency that the European officials were voicing support 
for Pashinyan before the election and have "forgotten about the Armenians in 
prison in Azerbaijan."