Nonetheless, a customs checkpoint may open between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, Russian political analyst Eduard Popov told Armenian News-NEWS.am.

In his words, the talks between official Yerevan, Moscow and Brussels—and with respect to either Armenia’s accession to the Russia-led Customs Union, or signing a free trade agreement with the European Union—have ended with Armenia’s official decision to join the integration system being created by Russia.   

“There is no doubt that Armenia’s ruling elite uses this argument during negotiations with the Russian party. Allied relations with Moscow make Yerevan’s negotiating positions quite hard for reaching favorable solutions.

“Overall, I consider the chances of opening a customs checkpoint between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh to be more than 50 percent. But a lot will depend on the effectiveness of Yerevan’s diplomatic efforts and the consistency in selecting the Russian vector of integration,” Popov stated, in particular.