A dispute over Moscow’s limits on Armenian goods is heading to the Eurasian Economic Union, where Yerevan wants the bloc to treat the curbs as unlawful barriers to trade.
Economy Minister Gevorg Papoyan said Armenia had brought separate challenges against restrictions introduced in recent months. Russia’s veto blocked the appeals, he said in comments reported by Kommersant. Papoyan said one case had reportedly received backing from three other EAEU members.
Papoyan said a barrier designation would trigger an EAEU deadline requiring Moscow to end the measures within 30 days. He said the bloc will take up Armenia’s latest, broader appeal Nov. 3. “We’ll see if there will be a tangible result,” he said, according to Kommersant.
The Moscow Times linked the dispute to Armenia’s move toward European Union membership. It reported that Moscow imposed broad product bans affecting Armenian goods this year and that the EU eased tariffs on around 80% of Armenia’s exports for the next two years.
The Moscow Times reported that Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan issued a joint report Tuesday warning of effects on Armenia’s trade, labor and energy markets if it leaves the EAEU or aligns with the EU. The outlet also reported that relations between Russia and Armenia deteriorated after Azerbaijan took control of Nagorno-Karabakh in September 2023. Armenian officials said Russian peacekeepers had not protected Nagorno-Karabakh’s Armenian population.
