Pashinyan: Armenia may skip EAEU summit in Belarus

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has warned that Armenia may skip future Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) summits in Belarus after a heated dispute with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko at a recent Supreme Eurasian Economic Council meeting.

In a video posted on his Telegram channel, Pashinyan stated that Armenian delegations might either participate remotely or refrain from attending the summits altogether, Caliber.Az reports via Russian media.

The tension erupted after Pashinyan announced that Armenia would take part in the next EAEU summit, scheduled for May 2025 in Minsk, via a remote format.

"The delegations of the Republic of Armenia will participate remotely or will not participate in the EAEU summits in Belarus," Pashinyan wrote.

To recall, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko had a tense exchange during a Supreme Eurasian Economic Council meeting in Saint Petersburg.

Lukashenko proposed holding the EAEU session and the Eurasian Economic Forum in Minsk in May, but Pashinyan, attending remotely, stated Armenia would participate via videoconference. Lukashenko sarcastically questioned the distance to Minsk, to which Pashinyan firmly reiterated his position.

The two continued to spar over the matter, with Pashinyan insisting that his statement was non-negotiable. 

By Aghakazim Guliyev