It is known that it is our partners in the EAEU who are pushing us towards rapprochement with the European Union. Speaker of the National Assembly of Armenia, Ruben Rubinyan, told this to reporters on Wednesday, responding to the criticism by the chairman of the Russian State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin.

According to Rubinyan, Russian officials always say that Armenia should hold a referendum on the matter, but this is possible only if, among other things, the matter is formulated. He said that it is impossible to simply hold a referendum if the accompanying measures have not been taken.

“The referendum will be possible to hold only if an application for EU membership is submitted, a positive response is received, and there is clarity regarding the timeframes. Due to the absence of the noted circumstances, it is not possible to hold a referendum [in Armenia on the matter] now,” Rubinyan added.

He assured that the Armenian authorities have always been sincere.

“We [i.e. Armenia] are not the ones taking actions aimed at worsening relations with Russia. On the contrary, we have done and continue to do everything to have normal, friendly relations,” said the speaker of the Armenian parliament.

In this context, he called the Russian restrictions on Armenian businesses unfair and disproportionate, and said these restrictions do not correspond to the spirit of Armenian-Russian relations, especially the rules of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).

“The whole point of the EAEU is the uninhibited and duty-free movement of goods. In this case, de facto there is no such freedom,” Rubinyan noted.

He added that Yerevan, one way or another, knew that it was free to make a decision on its membership in either the EU or the EAEU.

“And, in general, Yerevan will now be free in its choice. As the esteemed [Russian presidential spokesperson Dmitry] Peskov noted, Armenia is free in its choice,” said the speaker of the Armenian parliament.