The Armenian vector of the European People’s Party A resolution detached from reality

The European People’s Party (EPP), during its congress in Valencia on April 29–30, adopted an emergency resolution on Armenia. Why was it considered an emergency? The answer is embarrassingly simple.

May 1 and 2 are public holidays in Spain in honour of Labour Day (Día del Trabajador), a national celebration dedicated to workers’ rights and the achievements of the labour movement.

The “Great Schemer” Ostap Bender, for the same reason, postponed his wedding to Madame Gritsatsuyeva—standing in solidarity with workers of the world without even leaving the cash register.

The EPP followed a similar logic. Especially since trade unions were also making their presence felt in Valencia during those days. Early on May Day morning, they launched a demonstration highlighting workers' issues. The event was held under the slogan “Defendre el conquistat, guanyar future” (“Defend what’s been won, win the future”). The gathering began with a breakfast in the union gardens, after which participants marched to Plaza de España, where a manifesto was read aloud.

Throughout the day, various cultural events were also scheduled in Valencia, including the 60th anniversary edition of the Book Fair in the Viveros Gardens and the outdoor exhibition “The Prado in the Streets.”

And there you have it — the real reason behind the haste and “emergency” nature of the EPP’s resolution on Armenia.

So, what does the resolution say?

Overall, it’s the usual set of phrases that sound more like dinner toasts than policy. For instance, it includes praise for Armenia over its recent adoption of a law initiating the process of joining the EU. The fact that Armenia still remains a member of the  Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), reaping considerable benefits from that membership, seems to have been “forgotten” by the EPP. As was the fact that Russia has repeatedly demanded that Yerevan clarify its foreign policy direction.

It’s entirely possible that Armenia will soon find itself no longer a member of the EAEU, and not yet a member of the EU — but it will, at least, be showered with European applause.

The EPP resolution states that the “suspension of Armenia’s participation in the CSTO announced in August 2024 and the recent adoption of a bill committing to a European path for Armenia mark a historic shift of the country’s geopolitical strategy and are clear signs of dedication to engage further in the process of European integration.”

It also emphasises that this “turning point reflects Armenia’s readiness to disentangle itself from the Kremlin’s orbit and pursue a future aligned with European values.”

One can only imagine the laughter with which all of this was read by Russian servicemen stationed at the military base in Gyumri.

Meanwhile, the Armenian newspaper Zhoghovurd has already reported that Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan will remain in Moscow for an additional day after attending the Victory Day parade on May 9 — “in order to resolve foreign policy issues behind the scenes, in particular, to regain the trust of Moscow and the Kremlin.”

The EPP’s routine optimism about Armenia’s “European choice” is hard to reconcile with the reality in which Prime Minister Pashinyan is doing everything possible to be understood—and forgiven—in Moscow.

Even trade figures paint a comical contrast: Armenia’s trade volume with Russia is several times higher than with the EU. Still, the EPP’s “blindness” and “deafness” to such facts has its explanation. The European People’s Party is a political alliance in the European Union, founded in 1976. It brings together Christian-democratic, conservative, and centrist parties across Europe. Several Armenian political parties and movements cooperate with the EPP.

One such party is the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), led by former Karabakh separatist and Armenia’s third president, Serzh Sargsyan. The RPA holds partner status with the EPP. Its representatives take part in EPP events and engage in the activities of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe through the EPP group.

Some pro-European civil society and youth movements in Armenia also maintain ties with the EPP—often via its youth wing, EPP Youth. However, the EPP does not cooperate with Armenia’s ruling party, Civil Contract, headed by Nikol Pashinyan. In effect, the EPP is appealing to Armenia’s political fringe and “revanchists.”

The EPP’s position on the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict has consistently leaned pro-Armenian. Many of its members—particularly from France, Germany, and Greece—have expressed support for Armenia and condemned what they call “the use of force by Azerbaijan” during the 2020 and 2023 military operations. These same voices opposed Azerbaijan’s efforts to restore its sovereignty and territorial integrity, effectively supporting the decades-long Armenian occupation of 20% of Azerbaijani territory.

It is therefore no surprise that the EPP resolution calls for “remaining prisoners of war to be immediately and unconditionally released” and insists on “the guaranteed right of return of the ethnic Armenians to Nagorno-Karabakh.” To those who signed off on this scrap of paper, we offer a reminder: there is no such entity as “Nagorno-Karabakh” — there is the Karabakh Economic Region of Azerbaijan.

Let us also remind them that thousands of ethnic Armenians live across Azerbaijan, including in Baku — by their own choice. Just as voluntarily, and in comfort, Armenians who had been living illegally for decades in the temporarily occupied territories of Azerbaijan have now left.

Many of them, on their way out, even set fire to Azerbaijani homes — though the EPP chose not to recall that fact. Nor did they seem to notice that former leaders of the Karabakh junta are currently testifying before the Baku Military Court, confirming that they have no complaints about the conditions of their detention. In their statements, they consistently affirm that all crimes committed against Azerbaijan were carried out under the orders of Armenia’s former and current leadership — including Serzh Sargsyan, the head of the Republican Party of Armenia, which cooperates with the EPP.