Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin met with his Armenian counterpart Nikol Pashinyan as part of the International Environmental Conference, which will be held in the Altai Republic from July 24 to 26. The meeting took place on the territory of the Manzherok resort.

As noted by the press service of the Russian government, the conversation touched upon current aspects of Russian-Armenian relations in the trade and economic, scientific and technological, cultural and humanitarian spheres. The parties emphasized the importance of creating favorable conditions for the implementation of joint projects in various fields.

In particular, commenting on the meeting between Pashinyan and Mishustin, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Alexey Overchuk told journalists that Yerevan's decision to admit products that do not meet the EAEU certification standards to its market was discussed.

"There are some government acts that raise questions for us. In particular, we are talking about the admission of food products certified in accordance with the standards of the European Union, the United States of America, and other countries that do not comply with the certification of the Eurasian Economic Union. Of course, we are concerned about such issues as well,” the Russian Deputy Prime Minister shared.

Earlier, Overchuk stated that the structures of the Eurasian Economic Union would consider measures aimed at preventing goods that do not meet the union’s requirements from entering the EAEU market due to Armenia’s European integration process.

Pashinyan arrived in Russia on a working visit at the invitation of Mishustin to participate in a conference on environmental protection. Delegations from Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan are also participating in the event. The Russian Prime Minister has already held meetings with the heads of government of the first two countries.

Political scientist Arkady Dubnov ironically noted the “random” coincidence on his Facebook page: Moscow, through Peskov, “remembered” peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan on the very day that Armenian Prime Minister Pashinyan and his family arrived in Altai. According to the author of the post, the invitation of the Armenian leader to the conference had a political subtext and “was clearly one of those that are not accepted to be refused.”

Dubnov suggested that the event would discuss such topics as the peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the future of the Zangezur corridor and US participation, as well as Armenia’s possible withdrawal from the CSTO and the prospects for joining the EU while maintaining membership in the EAEU.

“One way or another, the idea of an “ecological” Russian-Armenian rendezvous far from Moscow looks like an idea that is as extravagant as it is meaningful. It seems desirable for both sides to agree on the principles of political “non-aggression”, since one of them has a very important event ahead in 2026, the parliamentary elections in Armenia. Whether Armenia will remain a democracy depends on their nature and preparation for them. But whether Moscow is ready to behave in a similarly civilized manner in relations with Baku, I will not even guess…” the political scientist summed up his observations.

Recall that the latest negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan on the preparation of a peace treaty are taking place without Russia’s mediation, which many observers regard as the exclusion of the Russian side from this process.

Russian Foreign Ministry representative Maria Zakharova, commenting on this format of the Armenian-Azerbaijani dialogue, said today: “At a certain point, Armenia and Azerbaijan preferred direct bilateral dialogue, we respect this choice. After all, we are talking about the fact that they will have to negotiate and live with each other, with their neighbors. Therefore, if they found an opportunity for direct dialogue, yes, this is their choice, which means that much of what we talked about is working out.”

At the same time, Zakharova emphasized that “with the direct assistance of Russia and personally President Vladimir Putin, a major stage of Armenian-Azerbaijani normalization was launched in 2020.”

Speaking at the Shusha Global Media Forum in Khankendi on July 19, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev again recalled one of his country's conditions for concluding peace - the need to dissolve the OSCE Minsk Group, co-chaired by Russia, the United States and France.

“The OSCE Minsk Group, represented by its co-chairs, each for their own reason, was on the side of Armenia and each tried to make this situation last forever,” he complained.

Aliyev claims that “if the Armenian side believes that the Karabakh conflict is over - and the Minsk Group was created for the Karabakh conflict - then it should be liquidated.

“This requires changes to the Armenian constitution so that the declaration of independence containing territorial claims against Azerbaijan is removed,” he added.