Russia Should Sell Gas to Us at a Higher Price, We Have Alternatives: Gagik Melkonyan

“We need Russia more than they need us,” said Gagik Melkonyan, a member of the National Assembly from the Civil Contract faction, in an interview with NEWS.am, referring to the harsh response from Russia to Prime Minister Pashinyan’s statement about moving towards the EU.

“Russia constantly leads us by the nose, while we export their goods nicely because they are under sanctions, and we help them make money. Just because we are not members of the EAEU doesn't mean that trade won’t continue; they are still selling us gas, and finally, they have income from that gas. Let them sell it at a higher price; we have alternatives. A lot has changed, so if they are gone, Armenia will not cease to exist. Yes, they have made the Titanic of Armenia, and they can destroy us every time, so we need to get off that Titanic so that Ovechuk doesn’t say we’re in it,” said the parliamentary member from the Civil Contract party.

He mentions that Armenia should consider its security: “When a neighboring country threatens us with war every second, who are the main reasons for that? Russia says the same thing. They threaten us with Aliyev; therefore, we must understand our state’s interests, what we will do, and where we are heading.”

When asked if the EU is expecting us, the parliament member gave an evasive answer, saying it is the desire of the people; in fact, Russia also understands that there is no road to travel with them. “They have always thought that Armenia is in their pocket, that we are their slaves, their vassals, and they have treated us however they wanted, as they have always done, even 100 years ago. Shouldn't we be searching for other paths to get out of this situation? They always scare us, saying, ‘we’ll cut off the gas soon,’ ‘we’ll close the road soon’; living that way isn’t living at all. We need to choose a path that will never close. That path is leading to the EU, and of course, the EU will accept us,” he said.