Russia has economic leverage over Armenia: ex-diplomat
Afshar Soleimani, Iran’s former ambassador to Azerbaijan, has said that Russia no longer has military leverages over Armenia.
“Recently, the Prime Minister of Armenia has adopted positions that show that Yerevan is looking to lean towards the West, which, of course, Russia considers this a serious threat to itself. The West, consisting of the United States and Europe, believe that Russia should engage in some new challenges in the South Caucasus, where even the discussion of NATO expansion makes sense,” Soleimani said in an exclusive interview with ILNA. “It should be understood that the supporters and allies of Russia in Yerevan could not remove Pashinyan from power because the West continues to support him, but it should be known that in the end, Russia's tools against Armenia will generally be economic, while previously these tools were military.”
He added, “Russia seeks to protect its surroundings from any Western aggression, and on this basis, Moscow has raised objections regarding Armenia's cooperation with the West.”
The former diplomat noted, “In my opinion, after the recent Brussels summit, a new alignment may take place in the South Caucasus, of which Armenia can be the center.”