The Speaker of the Armenian Parliament, Alen Simonyan, stated that Yerevan will initiate the procedure to withdraw from the CSTO and the Eurasian Economic Union if Moscow decides to raise the price of gas supplied to the republic.
According to him, if such a decision is made, Yerevan will respond with its own measures and will finally leave both organizations, Simonyan told reporters on April 4, Interfax reports.
Simonyan effectively indicated that in the current relations with Russia, the price of gas no longer appears to be just a commercial issue.
At the same time, he noted that he does not expect such a development, as there had previously been a “good and effective conversation” between the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, and the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin.
Earlier, during a meeting with Pashinyan, Putin emphasized that Armenia receives Russian gas at a preferential price—about $177.5 per thousand cubic meters. For comparison, he stated that the cost of gas in Europe exceeds $600 for the same volume.
Armenia’s relations with the CSTO are effectively frozen: starting in 2024, Armenia suspended its participation in the CSTO and stopped paying contributions, but formally did not withdraw from the organization. In December 2024, Pashinyan stated that the country “essentially already considers itself outside the CSTO,” iznanka.news notes.
The situation with the EAEU is more complex: the union remains an important economic channel, but at the same time, Armenia is increasingly building ties with the EU and the USA. Against this backdrop, any increase in the price of Russian gas could indeed be interpreted as a political signal, rather than a mere revision of commercial terms.
