Armenians voted in elections that could determine whether the country continues moving toward the West or returns to its traditional ally, Russia, BBC News writes.

"The small South Caucasus country of about three million people is facing growing economic pressure from Moscow as Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan seeks re-election while advancing a course toward European integration," the article says.

It emphasizes that Sunday’s elections drew significant international attention to Armenia, which is gradually moving closer to the West while remaining closely tied to Russia, its largest trading partner. The rapprochement with the West has largely been the result of Pashinyan’s own policies, BBC News notes.

Since coming to power in 2018, he has consistently steered the country away from Moscow, initiated a law to begin the process of joining the EU, and accelerated peace talks with Azerbaijan mediated by the United States. The latter earned him the support of U.S. President Donald Trump.

This year, Pashinyan also hosted in Yerevan a major summit of EU leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Despite these achievements, Pashinyan’s domestic support has fallen from 54% in 2021 to about 30% today. The main reason for the drop in his rating was Nagorno-Karabakh — a mountainous enclave within Azerbaijan where about 100,000 ethnic Armenians lived until 2023, when Azerbaijan established full control over it by military force.

Pashinyan’s critics still have not forgiven him for concessions made during the peace settlement process with Azerbaijan, including abandoning efforts to secure the release of former Karabakh leaders imprisoned in the neighboring country. The peace agreement with Azerbaijan remains highly controversial within society: according to the latest polls, about 44% of citizens support it, while 41% oppose it, the article stresses.

Pashinyan’s main opponents are several political forces and alliances. One of the key ones is the Armenia Alliance bloc led by former President Robert Kocharyan. The Republican Party of another ex-president, Serzh Sargsyan, is not fielding candidates but is urging supporters to vote against the current government. "Both former presidents believe that restoring close military-political and economic ties with Russia is the only way to ensure Armenia’s security.

Pashinyan’s main rival is also considered to be billionaire Samvel Karapetyan, who made his fortune in Russia. He is under house arrest on charges of attempting a coup and is campaigning through his nephew. According to the latest poll by the International Republican Institute, Pashinyan’s Civil Contract party is leading with support of about 32%, while about 40% of voters say they do not trust any political leader.

At the same time, if the opposition forces acted jointly, they could match Pashinyan’s result, but their disunity makes the current prime minister’s victory more likely," the publication notes.