MOSCOW, April 1. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed hope at a meeting with Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan that pro-Russian forces will be able to take part in the country’s elections.
"We have a lot of friends in Armenia. We know that. Many Armenians live in Russia. There are different estimates but we believe that the number stands at over two million, which is clear from our Interior Ministry’s statistics. And there are also many political forces [in Armenia] that have pro-Russian views," Putin noted.
"Our dialogue has always been honest and straightforward, so I will tell you frankly that we would very much like all these political parties and politicians to be able to take part in domestic political activities during elections," he added.
According to the Russian leader, "many of them are in custody, even though they hold Russian passports." "It’s up to you to decide; we don’t interfere. However, we would like all of them to be able to participate in domestic political activities," he said.
Armenia will hold its parliamentary elections in June 2026.