Putin Agrees to partial troop withdrawal amid Armenia's Western pivot

Vladimir Putin agreed to withdraw part of the Russian forces from Armenia. At the request of Yerevan, Russian officers will continue to be stationed at the borders with Turkey and Iran. The decision was made during a meeting of the Russian dictator with the Prime Minister of Armenia.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin agreed to withdraw Russian soldiers and border guard officers from various regions of Armenia, as reported on Thursday by the Reuters agency, citing Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

The decision was taken during a meeting between Putin and Armenia's Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan. During the discussions, an agreement was reached on this matter. At Yerevan's request, Russian border guard officers will still be stationed on the Armenian border with Turkey and Iran.

Armenia seeks closer relations with the West

For some time, Armenia has been striving to forge closer relations with the West, motivated by the growing tension between Armenia and its former ally, Russia.

Yerevan accuses Moscow of a lack of support in the conflict with Azerbaijan, particularly during the offensive carried out by Baku in Nagorno-Karabakh in the autumn of 2023. Russian peacekeeping forces remained passive, resulting in the conflict ending in Baku’s triumph, the loss of independence by Nagorno-Karabakh, and the flight of the Armenian population.

One sign of deteriorating relations between the countries was Armenia's February decision to suspend participation in the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO), which Russia controls.

In March, Armenia's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ararat Mirzoyan, announced that the country's authorities "are considering" the possibility of applying for membership in the European Union. Additionally, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg recently made his first visit to Armenia since the beginning of his tenure.