Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) stated yesterday that Armenia seeks to “detach” itself from Moscow and, pursuing this goal, will purchase part of its grain from Ukraine. However, the problem is that Ukrainian wheat is 50% more expensive than Russian, and according to the Russian side, Yerevan demanded that the EU compensate the price difference. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan called the Russian statement “complete nonsense.”
Nevertheless, the statement has already become a topic of active public discussion. It attracts attention not only for its lowbrow content uncharacteristic of state structures, but also for its broader context. Gayane Abrahamyan, head of the public organization “Center for Equal Rights,” comments on what purpose the publication of such a statement might serve.
According to her, the SVR statement directly reflects Moscow’s fears:
“This became evident when Azerbaijan allowed the transit of Kazakh wheat. Russia immediately rushed to ship its own grain, doing so much more swiftly, thereby demonstrating its dominant presence in the Armenian grain market—because the monopoly in this direction must belong solely to them.”
Abrahamyan noted that any new opportunity for Armenia to unblock communications and diversify supplies, any efforts by the Armenian side in this direction, will be met with great jealousy by Russia. The more dependence decreases in terms of food security, the fewer levers of influence on Armenia remain, the expert is convinced.
“Military supply dependence has already been reduced to zero. If previously 96% of all our weaponry was imported from Russia, now the same 96% comes from other countries. From this perspective, economic dependence, food dependence, and energy dependence are the three main factors allowing Russia to maintain its levers of influence in the region. Naturally, from the standpoint of food security, they will treat any diversification attempts with serious jealousy and anger. Such statements are utterly obvious nonsense that reveal their fears,” Abrahamyan is convinced.
As for Russia’s accusations of aiding Kyiv, she says Ukraine has absolutely no problems selling its grain.
“Ukraine has no issues with markets. By and large, most European countries meet their supply needs primarily through Ukrainian wheat consumption. In other words, Ukraine does not need such ‘help’ from Armenia,” she noted.
Furthermore, Abrahamyan added, Ukraine received far more significant assistance from Azerbaijan, yet in Baku’s case, Moscow never reacted similarly.
“Why did they suddenly remember this is a problem? There were never any statements about Azerbaijan. In other words, if Azerbaijan’s efforts are absolutely not a problem for Russia, why have our steps suddenly become one? In this context, the absurdity of the SVR statement becomes even more obvious.”
If Moscow views business transactions as aiding the enemy, then why did Russia arm Azerbaijan while claiming it was just business and nothing more, she asks.
“I’ll go further: they sold Azerbaijan new weaponry. That didn’t happen with Armenia. Yes, Armenia was sold arms at a lower price—it was second-hand equipment. Moreover, from the perspective of waging modern wars, it was completely useless weaponry,” Abrahamyan concluded.