Russian State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is pursuing policies aimed at closer ties with the European Union that could lead to divisions within Armenian society.

According to Volodin, a loss of unity previously created difficulties in Ukraine and the Baltic states, which believed life in the European Union would improve, but later faced different realities, Sputnik Armenia reported.

He added that amid discussions about Armenia’s European aspirations, trade turnover with Russia fell by 45.4% in 2025, with the negative trend continuing. Russian citizens working and doing business in Armenia have also begun reducing their operations.

The State Duma speaker also cited expert estimates suggesting that a possible Armenian withdrawal from the Eurasian Economic Union could cost the country 15–20% of its GDP, or at least $5 billion.

“The losses will be even greater. Not all of them are financial. We already see attempts to rewrite history and undermine national and traditional foundations. Western liberal values are being imposed on the Armenian people, while pressure on the church is increasing,” he said.

Volodin stressed that choosing the country’s development path should прежде всего reflect the will of the people.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov earlier warned that Yerevan could lose all advantages linked to membership in the Eurasian Economic Union. Lavrov said relations between Moscow and Yerevan would be discussed at the Eurasian Economic Union summit in Kazakhstan later in May. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan previously stated he would be unable to attend the meeting because of the election campaign.