Armenian government forwards EU Membership initiative to parliament following public petition

By Gevorg Tosunyan

The Armenian government approved and forwarded to the National Assembly a draft law regarding "The Process of the Republic of Armenia's Accession to the European Union" on January 9, 2025. This action was legally required after pro-European groups collected over 52,000 signatures, exceeding the 50,000 threshold needed to bring the matter before parliament.

While this represents a procedural step, it does not constitute an actual EU membership application. Although Armenia is part of the EU's Eastern Partnership program, it does not hold candidate status like Moldova and Ukraine, which were granted candidacy status last year. Brussels recently suspended Georgia's candidate status deliberations.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan emphasized the measured nature of this development. "The final decision on joining the EU can only be made through a referendum. There is no other option," Pashinyan stated, adding that "there is neither much reason for enthusiasm nor concern."

The initiative originated from four pro-Western parties and civil society organizations united under the Democratic Forces Platform, including the non-parliamentary Republic Party, For the Republic Party, the European Party, the Christian-Democratic Party, and several civic initiatives.

According to Armenian law, if the National Assembly rejects the draft law, initiative supporters must collect 300,000 signatures to bypass parliament and trigger a direct referendum.

Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan outlined the government's positive response to the draft, citing intensified Armenia-EU relations across various sectors and the EU's consistent support for Armenian democracy. He also highlighted the EU's security engagement, particularly the civilian monitoring mission along the Armenia-Azerbaijan border, deployed in early 2023 following Azerbaijan's military aggression in September 2022.

Armenia's potential EU aspirations are complicated by its current membership in the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), which it joined in 2015. Several high-ranking Armenian officials have indicated that leaving the EAEU to pursue EU membership is currently unrealistic.

Many observers view the Democratic Forces Platform's initiative within the context of Armenia's upcoming parliamentary elections in June 2026. These political forces are expected to mobilize anti-Russian sentiment among voters, capitalizing on Russia's failure to fulfill its alliance obligations to Armenia and the ethnic cleansing of Nagorno-Karabakh's Armenian population despite the presence of Russian peacekeepers.

Pashinyan also addressed practical matters, including the need to work on visa liberalization with the EU and noted increasing concerns about long queues and red tape at EU embassy visa sections.