MOSCOW, March 30. /TASS/. While reckless moves on the part of Yerevan may increase tensions in its dialogue with Moscow in the near future, the Russian-Armenian relationship should recover further down the road, Chairman of the Council of the Foundation for Development and Support of the Valdai Discussion Club Andrey Bystritsky told TASS.

Commenting on the announcement on Friday by Armenian banks that they will stop servicing Russian Mir cards from March 30, the expert said that "many decisions made by [Armenian] Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan have harmed Armenia itself."

"Replacing relations with Russia with ties with Western countries is absolutely impossible, at least for geographic reasons," Bystritsky emphasized. "Perhaps we will see the most unexpected turns in Armenian politics, but I believe that Armenia will recover politically after a while, especially against the background of what’s happening in real world," he added.

Meanwhile, before any "political recovery," bilateral communication risks facing a number of major challenges soon, the analyst warned. "In the short term, Yerevan’s reckless moves may further weaken Armenia’s positions, cause a further deterioration in living standards [in the republic], increase anti-Russian rhetoric, affect relations between people, and cause various shocks inside Armenia, too," he concluded.

On March 29, the Russian Foreign Ministry expressed its concerns that Armenia is likely to be left with nothing if it is taken in by the European Union’s empty promises about getting into the EU market and decides to withdraw from the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).