Armenia to apply for EU membership by 2028

Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced at a press conference on 5 November that the South Caucasus country intends to formally submit an application to join the European Union (EU) by 2028. The move points to Yerevan's continued distancing from Russia, its long-standing ally.

"We have started the process of creating an alternative that would allow our citizens to make a choice," Pashinyan said. According to him, the process will lead in 2027 or 2028 to a formal application to begin accession to the EU as a full member state.

Ties to Russian-led blocs

Pashinyan said Armenia has no immediate plans to leave the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). He added that member states of the bloc have spoken about the possibility of Armenia holding a referendum on its future ties. Moscow has repeatedly stated that membership in both blocs is impossible because their rules contradict each other.

The prime minister also said Armenia has "lost interest" in the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO), a Moscow-led military alliance. Armenia has already frozen its membership in the organisation.

Earlier steps

In April 2025, Armenia passed a law launching the process of becoming an EU member state, although the law itself was not a formal application.

Pashinyan's foreign policy shift towards the West has provoked anger in the Kremlin. Earlier this year, Moscow imposed trade restrictions on Armenian agricultural exports and threatened to end preferential energy supplies.