Condition for EU accession referendum announced in Armenia

Russia's upper house speaker Valentina Matviyenko and Armenian parliament speaker Ruben Rubinyan have discussed a referendum on Armenia’s accession to the European Union over the phone, the Armenian legislative body said.

"Ruben Rubinyan noted that the referendum on Armenia’s membership in the European Union, which the Russian Federation expects, may become practically possible only after Armenia submits an official application to the European Union and the process moves to a substantive phase," the statement reads.

Yerevan has recently been declaring its course towards integration with the EU. Last year the Armenian parliament adopted a law initiating the republic’s accession to the union. At the same time, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said the country does not intend to withdraw from the EAEU and expects to combine membership in it with integration into the EU for as long as possible.