Pashinyan on relations with Russia: "Friendship is friendship, but  service is service"

ArmInfo.  Russian gas prices for Armenia cannot increase because a mutually beneficial agreement is in effect. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated this at a briefing on May 21, speaking about restrictions on Armenian goods supplied to Russia, the country's possible withdrawal from the EAEU, and rising gas prices.

According to Pashinyan, the parties had previously reached clear  strategic agreements regarding gas prices, which must be respected.

Regarding restrictions on the supply of goods, including flowers, the  Prime Minister noted that if a product does not meet standards, it  cannot be supplied to Russia.

"Such situations have arisen dozens of times in the EAEU, and not  only in connection with Armenia," Pashinyan added. Noting that this  situation is not unique, and that similar incidents have occurred  dozens of times over the past eight years, involving various goods.  "Questions of product quality and origin have been discussed at the  highest level within the EAEU. From time to time, country leaders  discuss all these issues at the Supreme Economic Council and the EAEU  Intergovernmental Council. Regarding the latest case, the question  remains whether all flowers from Armenia imported to Russia are  actually grown in Armenia. This issue isn't unique to Armenia-dozens  of such delegations are sent to other countries, so this is another  common occurrence," the Prime Minister stated.

When asked why this is happening given Pashinyan's current  relationship with Russian leaders, which he himself described as  friendly, the Prime Minister replied: "Friendship is friendship, and  service is service." If relations are friendly, does that mean goods  that don't meet EAEU standards should be allowed to arrive without  any monitoring?"

Speaking about the possibility of Armenia's withdrawal from the EAEU,  the Prime Minister noted that the decision to leave the organization  is solely up to Yerevan.