YEREVAN, January 15. /TASS/. The strategic partnership agreement with the US turns Armenia into a tool for implementing Washington's programs, which can be used against Russia and Iran at any moment, political scientist Hrant Melik-Shahnazaryan, the head of the Voskanapat think tank, has told TASS.
"The signed charter, in fact, makes Armenia a tool for the implementation of US programs in the region, which at any moment can be used against both Moscow and Tehran. This would entail retaliation, to say the least. Regrettably, Armenia remains a scene where the interests of geopolitical centers collide, which poses quite a few threats to us," the expert noted.
According to Melik-Shahnazaryan, "the Armenian authorities are consistently deteriorating relations with Russia and Iran."
"This already looks not like non-cooperation, but like a full-scale conflict. What benefits can Armenia derive from it? None. While further losses are more than likely. Are there any chances that our country will withstand all these conflicts that are developing in parallel, with Azerbaijan, Turkey, Iran, and Russia? None, either," he added.
The political analyst is certain that Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan, by signing the document with the United States, "brought the war one step closer to Armenia's doorstep."
The Strategic Partnership Charter was signed during Mirzoyan's visit to Washington. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at the beginning of the meeting that a group of US Customs and Border Protection officers will be sent to Armenia in the coming weeks to strengthen bilateral security cooperation.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Armenia's decision to sign this agreement was Yerevan's sovereign choice. He stressed that he saw no problems in Armenia's contacts with Western countries and the EU, but at the same time noted that countries in the region should resolve their problems with neighboring countries rather than turning to the EU and the US for support.