Russia not indifferent to political processes in Armenia

PanARMENIAN.Net - "Russia is not indifferent to political processes in Armenia, specifically on the threshold of election," said Sergey Markov, Director of the Institute for Political Studies. "First, Armenian nation is a fraternal nation and it's not all the same for us how this fraternal nation lives. Second, we are developing a multisided cooperation with Armenia. Armenia is a member of the CIS, CSTO and EurAsEC. It's our strategic partner in the Transcaucasus and we highlight stability in an allied state. The problem of stability emerged after the untimely death of the Prime Minister. The post will be most likely assumed by Serge Sargsyan, the incumbent Defense Minister and one of the Republican Party leaders. This appointment will presume pro-Russian line of the Armenian leadership but at the same time will lead to intensification of the election struggle," Sergey Markov said.



"Russia should influence on the Armenian election without penetrating into the republic's sovereignty. But Russia should not be more modest than U.S. and EU. I think it's high time to stop witnessing how our fraternal nations are being invaded by outer influence centers and anti-Russian policy," the Russian expert said.



When asked how Russia should exert influence, Sergey Markov said, "First of all we should send observers to Armenia to reduce the republic's dependence from politically 'engaged' OSCE observers, who arrive with prepared answers to all questions. Besides, Russia should support some parties and candidates. We know that most of Armenian citizens stand for priority of relations with Russia and they have the right to know Russia's opinion," Kreml.org reports.