Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has responded to Russia's threats to expel his country from the Eurasian Economic Union.
According to Medianews.az, on May 22 in Yerevan, in a conversation with journalists, Pashinyan stated that according to the rules, the decision to leave the Eurasian Economic Union can only be made by the member state itself. He emphasized that there is no mechanism for a member state to be expelled from the union: "Therefore, only Armenia itself can decide to leave the Eurasian Economic Union, there is no other rule. We alone can discuss Armenia’s status in the union."
On May 29, the Eurasian Economic Union summit will be held in Astana, Kazakhstan. Nikol Pashinyan will not attend the meeting. Some time ago, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk said that the issue of Armenia’s status in the union would be discussed at the meeting in Astana.
In his May 22 statement, Pashinyan said that Yerevan is ready to discuss any issue: "I assume that our partners may have questions and we will patiently answer all questions."