“We understand that if Armenia is moving towards Europe, then, accordingly, we will have to review the entire complex of economic relations with this country,” Overchuk told Russian journalists. “And, unfortunately, this will affect the living standards of people in Armenia, something which we would certainly not like to see.”
“We understand that the EEU and the EU have similar agendas,” he went on. “And therefore, of course, the country will have to decide and make this choice because it cannot sit on two chairs simultaneously. That is absolutely certain.”
Overchuk commented on the Armenian parliament’s final passage on Wednesday of a bill declaring the “start of a process of Armenia's accession to the European Union.” Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s government endorsed the bill in early January. Overchuk was quick to describe that move as “the beginning of Armenia's withdrawal from the EEU.” He warned that the South Caucasus nation risks losing its tariff-free access to Russia’s vast market and having to pay much more for Russian natural gas and foodstuffs.
Armenian officials responded by saying that Yerevan has no plans yet to leave the trade bloc comprising five ex-Soviet states. They maintain that the one-sentence bill resented by Moscow does not amount to an EU membership bid. But it remains unclear what Pashinian’s government is planning to do next.
No EU member state has officially voiced support for Armenia’s eventual membership in the 27-nation bloc. Nor has the EU’s executive body, the European Commission, welcomed the Armenian bill passed amid Yerevan’s unprecedented rift with Moscow.
Russia accounted for over 41 percent of Armenia’s foreign trade last year, compared with the EU’s 7.7 percent share. Armenian government data also shows that in 2024 Russian-Armenian trade soared by over 56 percent to $12.4 billion while Armenia’s combined trade with EU member states shrank by around 12 percent to $2.3 billion.
“This shows how profitable it is [for Armenia] to trade with the Eurasian Union and how profitable it is to trade with Europe,” Overchuk said, according to Russian news agencies. “Armenians definitely have to choose.”