Armenia takes first step toward EU membership

On 9 January, the Armenian government approved a draft law to initiate the process of joining the European Union, News.am has reported. In 2023, Armenia's authorities revised their foreign policy, charting a course toward closer ties with Western countries. Nearly a year ago, the speaker of the Armenian parliament, Alen Simonyan, suggested that the country should consider applying for EU membership. Later, Ararat Mirzoyan, the country’s foreign minister, confirmed that Armenia was exploring the idea of submitting an application to join the bloc. Armenia's potential EU membership is its sovereign right, but being part of two different organizations is impossible, said Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary for the Russian ruler Vladimir Putin, according to UNIAN. For many years, the country maintained its ties with Moscow and is also a member of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) alongside Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Kyrgyzstan.

"Of course, it is Armenia’s sovereign right. We know that membership in the EAEU is beneficial," stated Peskov.

The draft law to begin the EU accession process will be submitted to the parliament after the Armenian government approves it. Foreign Minister Mirzoyan commented on the decision, noting that in recent years, relations between Armenia and the European Union have been "quite intensive and dynamic." Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan emphasized that the decision to join the bloc can only be made following a national referendum. In 2024, Armenia officially became the 124th state to join the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, granting it the authority to arrest Russian leader Vladimir Putin on its territory. On 17 March, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Putin and Russian Children’s Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova, accusing them of the war crime of unlawfully deporting and transferring children from occupied areas of Ukraine to Russia.

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