Media: Putin to demand explanations from Pashinyan over strained Russian-Armenian ties

The Russian authorities will strictly demand explanations from Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan about cooperation and relations between the two countries, which are likely to be in an overstretched situation, Caliber.Az reports, citing the Yerevan-based newspaper Zhokhovurd.

"The Russian president [Vladimir Putin] wants to receive clarifications personally from Pashinyan. The Russian authorities are very serious this time and will demand from Pashinyan not another incomplete and vague answers but clear and specific ones," the newspaper says.

"Yesterday [on December 25] it became known that Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan went on a working visit to St. Petersburg. Nikol Pashinyan took part in a meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council there, and today, on December 26, he will take part in an informal CIS summit. Dmitry Peskov, the Russian president’s press secretary, considered this a great opportunity for Pashinyan and Putin to communicate after a long pause.

According to unnamed Armenian sources, Pashinyan's visit to Russia was especially expected by the Russian authorities, as they have many questions to Pashinyan, and the Russian president wants to get clarifications from Pashinyan personally.

“It is also noteworthy that for a long time, the Armenian authorities avoided all meetings organized with the mediation of Russia, but now it seems that the Pashinyan authorities regretted the idea of the final destruction of relations with Russia and decided to restore them," the newspaper writes.