Ex-PM: EU referendum in Armenia needed only for withdrawal of Russian military base

Brussels only needs a referendum on Armenia’s accession to the EU to raise the question of the withdrawal of the Russian military base, former Prime Minister, ex-member of parliament from the faction of the Republican Party of Armenia Khosrov Harutyunyan said at the hearing “EU-EAEU: political or economic choice?”, Report informs referring to Sputnik Armenia.

It is obvious that in order to join the European Union, candidate countries have been required to fulfill rather strict conditions for years. If the Armenian authorities decide to hold such a referendum, and the people speak out in favor of joining the EU, then the next question that Brussels will raise will be the presence of a Russian military base in Armenia, he said. It is clear that the EU does not want to see among its members any country where Russian troops are located, Harutyunyan noted.

“This is where we should look for the real reason why this referendum became a topic for discussion,” Harutyunyan said.

According to him, it is unnecessary to talk about the purely economic benefits of Armenia’s participation in the EAEU. The former prime minister believes that talk about a decrease in purchasing power on the Russian market is groundless, since Armenia, with a population of 3 million, will always be able to find a place for itself in a market of 140 million, which has also been familiar for a long time.

Further work with the European Union should be carried out in the direction of strengthening cooperation, but not integration, he added.