Products being freely sold in the United Arab Emirates, the European Union, and China cannot objectively fail to meet the standards of the Russian market, Armenian economy minister Gevorg Papoyan told reporters Wednesday.

Responding to Armenian News-NEWS.am's question as to whether Armenia’s request to Russia to lift its restrictions on Armenian imports indicates the imperfection of the European market, the Armenian economy minister said that the problem is not the lack of alternatives, but the observance of the fundamental rules of the integration union.

"All EAEU [i.e. the Eurasian Economic Union] member states are obliged to ensure the free movement of goods, services, and workforce. And the presence of artificial obstacles indicates the violation of the principles of the union," Papoyan noted.

Speaking separately about the effectiveness of integration mechanisms, the Armenian economy minister noted: "We [i.e. Armenia] want the EAEU to work and function, not to resemble the CSTO [i.e. the Collective Security Treaty Organization]. We treat the EAEU as our organization and cannot adopt a passive or neutral position towards its non-functioning mechanisms. The non-functioning principles of the EAEU are not only a problem for Armenia, but for the entire Union."