Russia says Armenia is being dragged into EU’s ‘anti-Russian orbit’

MOSCOW, May 7 (Reuters) – Russia’s Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that Armenia was being drawn into what it described as the European Union’s “anti‑Russian orbit”.

The comment by the ministry’s spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, was a sign of increasing tensions between the two countries, formerly close allies, after Armenian officials accused Russia of failing to protect it from neighbour and longtime rival Azerbaijan.

Zakharova told reporters that Armenia, with the approval of its leadership, was becoming aligned with what she described as “aggressive Euro-Atlantic standards”.

“Such a course will inevitably lead to negative political and economic consequences for Armenia,” she said in a briefing.

Armenia has in recent years sought to deepen ties with the EU, including by hosting the European Political Community (EPC) summit in Yerevan on May 4 and a follow‑up EU-Armenia summit, bringing more than 40 European leaders to the capital.

Ties between Russia and Armenia, host to various Russian military bases, have grown increasingly rancorous since Azerbaijan forcibly retook its breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh in September 2023 despite the presence there of Russian peacekeepers.

(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov, Writing by Anna Peverieri; Editing by Mark Trevelyan and Gareth Jones)