Armenia hosts a historic European Union summit as the country charts a
course away from Russia
[May 05, 2026]
By ELISE MORTON and MARK CARLSON
YEREVAN, Armenia (AP) — Armenia hosts its first bilateral summit with
the European Union on Tuesday, a landmark diplomatic moment for the
Caucasus Mountains nation that has formally declared its ambition to
join the bloc and is cautiously loosening its ties with longtime ally
Russia.
The EU-Armenia summit in Yerevan follows the eighth gathering of the
European Political Community, or EPC, which brought dozens of European
leaders to the Armenian capital on Monday to address European defense
issues and the Iran war.
Meanwhile, Tuesday's bilateral meeting saw Armenia and the EU sign a
connectivity partnership to strengthen economic ties and deepen security
cooperation.
The two events underscore how Armenia is seeking to turn westward and
shed Russia's influence. Armenia’s relations with Moscow, its longtime
sponsor and ally, have grown increasingly strained since 2023, when
neighboring Azerbaijan fully reclaimed the Karabakh region and ended the
decadeslong rule by ethnic Armenian separatists.
Armenian authorities accused Russian peacekeepers who were deployed to
the region of failing to stop Azerbaijan’s onslaught. Moscow, busy with
the war in Ukraine, rejected the accusations, arguing that its troops
didn’t have a mandate to intervene.
The war was “a belated demonstration that Russia is dangerously
unreliable as a partner,” Richard Giragosian, director of the Regional
Studies Center in Yerevan, told The Associated Press.
Pursuing ties with Europe
Since then, the government of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan
has pursued closer ties with the West, a move welcomed by the 27-nation
EU.
The opening ceremony of the EU-Armenia summit on Tuesday saw European
Council President António Costa walk the red carpet side by side with
Pashinyan and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, while
a military band played in front of Armenian and EU flags.
In her opening statement, von der Leyen said that Europe was ready to
aid Armenia in becoming a regional hub for global trade routes,
including the building of physical infrastructure.
“We’re ready to invest in the local energy production and the energy
links across the Black Sea, and we are ready to connect your booming
digital scene to Europe’s digital market and turn Armenia’s position at
the heart of this region into a motor of growth,” she said.
The new EU-Armenia connectivity partnership will focus on strengthening
transportation, energy and digital links. Meanwhile, EU investments in
Armenia are expected to reach 2.5 billion euros ($2.9 billion) under its
global gateway infrastructure program, both sides said in a joint
statement.
“Today’s EU-Armenia summit sends a clear signal of the EU’s firm
commitment to deepen our relations with Armenia, and to strengthen
cooperation across many new areas,” Costa said. “Bringing Armenia and
its people closer to the European Union.”
Symbolic moves
The EU, rather than the United States, has stepped into the vacuum left
by Russia, Giragosian said.
“EU engagement is much more prudent and much more productive than the
U.S. becoming involved, simply because European engagement is less
provocative to Russia over the longer term,” he said.
In 2025, Armenia's parliament passed a law formally declaring the
country’s intention to seek EU membership.
However, Giragosian described Tuesday’s summit as “a focus on deepening
the preexisting relationship” rather than a step toward candidacy,
referencing the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement that
has governed EU-Armenia ties since fully taking effect in 2021.
“The symbolic significance is much greater as a message to Russia,” he
said.
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From left, European Council President Antonio Costa, Armenia's Prime
Minister Nikol Pashinyan and European Commission President Ursula
von der Leyen at the conclusion of a media conference during the
EU-Armenia summit at the Presidential Palace in Yerevan, Armenia,
Tuesday, May 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Anthony Pizzoferrato)
Armenia has also taken other symbolic steps. It joined the
International Criminal Court in 2023, a move that Moscow condemned
as an “unfriendly step.” The court has issued an arrest warrant for
Russian President Vladimir Putin, accusing him of personal
responsibility for the abductions of children from Ukraine.
Armenia also froze its participation in the Moscow-led Collective
Security Treaty Organization in 2024.
However, Armenia remains a member of the Russia-led Eurasian
Economic Union, or EEU, a single market allowing the free movement
of goods, capital and labor. The organization also includes Belarus,
Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan — and Putin has made the trade-offs plain.
Speaking at talks with Pashinyan in Moscow earlier this year, Putin
warned that Armenia couldn't simultaneously belong to both the EEU
and the EU, noting that Yerevan currently receives Russian natural
gas at prices far below European market rates. Pashinyan
acknowledged the incompatibility, but said that Armenia could, for
now, combine EEU membership with deepening EU cooperation.
Pashinyan, who has been in office since 2018 and faces a
parliamentary election in June, stands to benefit politically from
the international profile of the European meetings. Giragosian said
that Pashinyan's government is likely to be reelected largely by
default, with the opposition unable to offer a credible alternative
program.
But Giragosian warned against framing Armenia’s foreign policy as
purely a pivot from Russia to the West.
“Armenia is also pivoting beyond the black and white zero-sum game
paradigm,” he said, pointing to significant diplomatic investment in
Asia, including with Japan, South Korea and China. “This is not
about replacing Russia with the West. This is much more innovative,
much more sophisticated.”
Heightened tensions
The summit also comes at a moment of diplomatic strains between
Azerbaijan and the EU. Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs
summoned the EU ambassador last week to protest a European
Parliament resolution demanding the release of Armenian prisoners of
war and criticizing the treatment of Armenians in Karabakh.
Lawmakers in Azerbaijan subsequently voted to suspend all
cooperation with the European Parliament.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, who addressed the EPC conference
via video link, accused the European Parliament and the
Parliamentary Assembly for the Council of Europe, or PACE, of
“double standards” for placing sanctions on Azerbaijan's delegation.
There were also protests outside the EPC summit venue, which was
surrounded by tight security. Demonstrators held photos of Armenian
prisoners being held in Azerbaijan.
Opposition leader Aram Sargsyan, head of the Democratic Party of
Armenia, told the Armenian Press Agency that the European officials
were voicing support for Pashinyan before the election and have
“forgotten about the Armenians in prison in Azerbaijan.”
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Elise Morton reported from London. Avet Demourian in Yerevan, and
Katie Marie Davies in Manchester, England, contributed to this
report.
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