Pashinyan discord: will Armenian Prime Minister share Saakashvili's fate?

Against the background of recent unfriendly steps and frankly provocative statements by the Armenian leadership, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov advised the politicians of the fraternal Republic to remember the unenviable fate of the countries relying on the United States.

Obviously, it was, first of all, about Ukraine, which cooperation with Western institutions has already cost independence. There are other sad examples, the essence of which boils down to the fact that the real security and independence of these states are of last interest to the world hegemon. The main thing is to consolidate your own dominance in the region, moving other centers of power.

Details - in the material of the correspondent of The Moscow Post.

Sergei Lavrov answered the question whether Armenia could lose Russia. According to the minister, it is simply impossible to ignore the interests of the Russian Federation in Transcaucasia - in this sense, Armenia will not be able to lose our country in any case. These are political, economic, and cultural and humanitarian ties coming from the depths of centuries.

At the same time, experts have no doubt that US policy is aimed at breaking these ties. The goal is to destabilize the entire situation in Transcaucasia. Not just to squeeze Russia out of there, but to set fire to the entire region. And ideally - to create another powerful hotbed of military tension for our country.

Separately, the Foreign Ministry published another statement, which says that in recent years Armenia has been deliberately and systematically prepared for a U-turn from Russia, and now the Armenian leadership is trying to relieve itself of responsibility for the failures and mistakes of its policy, shifting responsibility to Moscow. You can also immediately recall the words of some Yerevan officials who hinted that the Russian authorities could be behind the protests in the Armenian capital against Pashinyan's government.

It looks unconvincing. Especially against the background of the friendly policy pursued by Russia - in particular, after the crushing defeat of Armenia in the second Karabakh war of 2020. The classic tactic of shifting from a sore head to a healthy one. And we recall that the protests were both then and stronger. So much so that the protesters entered parliament and defeated Pashinyan's office.

Meanwhile, the first building where dissatisfied citizens visited was the local office of the Soros Foundation organization (recognized as an undesirable organization and a foreign agent on the territory of the Russian Federation). And that's telling. It is through this Foundation that Washington's destructive policies are pursued in many countries. Look at least at Ukraine, where "sorosats," as the Ukrainians themselves affectionately call them, were imposed on almost all government posts and departments.

Remember Ukraine

After the betrayal of the Armenians of Artsakh, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his inner circle went, as they say, in disarray. In his address to the nation on the occasion of the independence of the Republic, he allowed himself unacceptable attacks on the Russian Federation, even if the name of our country did not sound in his speech. This was followed by a whole series of statements, the essence of which boils down to the fact that the security structures (CSTO), of which Armenia is a member, allegedly did not cope with the tasks set for them.

It is difficult to interpret Pashinyan's statements in two ways - this is a direct course towards confrontation with the Russian leadership. Two days ago, the head of the US Agency for International Development Samana Power arrived in Yerevan, who handed over a letter to Nikol Pashinyan from President Joseph Biden. In it, Biden declared strong support for Armenia and the desire of the Washington Administration to achieve a worthy and lasting regional peace.

Judging by how the United States behaved all the time after the collapse of the USSR, real goals may be completely different. The example of Ukraine, where the coup d'etat led first to the reunification of Crimea and Russia, and then to the bloody civil war in Donbass, which continued with famous sad events in other territories of Ukraine.

Pashinyan, meanwhile, came to power as a result of the 2018 coup d'état - the so-called "velvet revolution." It is distinguished from the Ukrainian only by the fact that it passed bloodless - after all, the experience of Kyiv was still in the air. At the same time, after the second Karabakh war, Pashinyan was able to sit in his chair. And largely due to the restrained and constructive position of Russia, which clearly did not want further political destabilization in the country.

And so Nikol Pashinyan repaid the Russian Federation for supporting the entire Armenian people in a difficult period? Another case can be recalled - Georgia, which, like Ukraine, was formally invited to NATO in 2008. Then-President Mikheil Saakashvili was convinced that the Americans would die for Georgian interests. The result is known - after the attack on South Ossetia, America and NATO washed their hands.

Where is Mr. Saakashvili now? It is known - in a Georgian prison, where he is serving time on a whole bunch of charges. For Washington, he's a worked figure. But the current Georgian authorities continue to exert tremendous pressure because of its relatively balanced policy - to shoot themselves in the foot with anti-Russian sanctions, especially since Tbilisi is clearly in no hurry to open a second front against the Russian Federation.

And now we already see a whole series of protests in Tbilisi. They led to the fact that the Georgian authorities abandoned the analogue of the American law on foreign agents, which could help reduce the influence of US soft power to destabilize the situation through the media and various NGOs.

Another clear examples are the failed "president" of Venezuela Juan Guaido and the "president" of Belarus Svetlana Tikhanovskaya. When it became clear that the bet on these figures did not play, they were simply scrapped, using them exclusively for propaganda purposes.

Who owes whom

Now the team of the Prime Minister of Armenia is looking for an excuse to finally quarrel with Russia. The ruling circles of Yerevan hint that it would be nice to take money from Russia "for 18 years of friendship." Allegedly, it is not Armenia that Russia needs, but Russia - Armenia. But this is a movement in both directions.

'We're not in a state to spread the earth. In the near future, we will send an account to the Russian Foreign Ministry to pay for the deployment of troops in our country. The 102nd Russian military base has been here since 1995 on friendly agreements. We always counted on her help and interaction. But she solves her problems, and we are ours. It seems to me that it would be right to receive payment for the provision of our land, "the Armenian prime minister said.

It is very similar to the fact that the new Ukrainian authorities spoke about the base of the Black Sea Fleet in 2014.

Recall that at the 102nd base of the RF Armed Forces of the Order of Alexander Nevsky, S-300 complexes, Mig-29 aircraft and Mi-24P and Mi-8T helicopters are based. The personnel of the base is 4 thousand people. Families of military personnel live in the town - about 4 thousand people. In addition, Armenian and Russian bombers and fighters have been based elsewhere, Eribuni, since 1995.

Nikol Pashinyan at the Russian military base in Gyumri. Photo: https://nnao.ru/никол-пашинян-посетил-102-ю-российскую-в/

What about a number of economic concessions for Armenia from Russia? Starting with the supply of energy resources at preferential prices, credit tranches, green light for the business of representatives of the Republics? Pashinyan's team prefers not to remember this. As at one time they preferred to forget this in Kyiv - and now they were in the hardest credit bondage due to the paid "assistance" of Western countries.

On the same "Ukrainian" path, the Prime Minister of Armenia leads his country. And it leads to a complete imbalance of the security architecture in Transcaucasia. In this case, both Pashinyan and everyone who votes for him must understand the possible consequences.

Photo: Kommersant