Russia respects Armenia`s sovereign right to diversify its relations,  as long as this does not undermine Russian-Armenian cooperation

ArmInfo. Russia consistently emphasizes its respect for Armenia's sovereign right to diversify its foreign policy relations, with the understanding that this will not  undermine Russian-Armenian cooperation and interaction within common  integration associations. This was stated by Russian Ambassador to  Armenia Sergey Kopyrkin in an interview with Iravunk in response to a  request for Russia's position on the European Political Community  (EPC) summit held in Yerevan, its results, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy's  participation.

He recalled that Russia is not a participant in the EPC format;  however, judging by publicly available information, increased  attention was paid to Russian issues, albeit in a purely  confrontational vein.  "Zelenskyy's aggressive remarks toward Moscow  have provoked not only a stern warning from the Russian Ministry of  Defense but also a lack of understanding among the Armenian public.  The fact that Russia and Belarus were not initially invited to the  ENP platform clearly demonstrates that its initiators are not seeking  to develop a unifying agenda," the Russian ambassador said.

At the same time, the diplomat emphasized that, in contrast, Moscow  and Minsk have put forward an initiative to create an open  architecture for ensuring stability on the Eurasian continent, based  on the principles of indivisible security and the primary  responsibility of Eurasian states for resolving Eurasian problems.  "We are ready for the participation of all states committed to  dialogue and constructive cooperation," he said.

Earlier, during his speech at the 8th European Political Community  Summit in Yerevan, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy threatened  Russia with an attack on Moscow on the day of the Victory Day Parade  on May 9. He advised foreign leaders to avoid attending the parade.  At a briefing on May 7, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria  Zakharova stated that Russia will not forget Yerevan's silence in the  face of Zelenskyy's "terrorist statements" against Moscow. Moreover,  on the same day, Armenian Ambassador to Russia Gurgen Arsenyan was  summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry and a protest was lodged  against him in this regard.