How to avoid a multidimensional crisis: Europe rethinks security in Yerevan
WORLD / Ukraine
How to avoid a multidimensional crisis: Europe rethinks security in Yerevan
Olha Konsevych
Armenia is scaling up cooperation with the European Union while gradually distancing itself from Moscow. The eighth European Political Community (EPC) summit and the first-ever EU-Armenia summit in Yerevan were more than a symbolic gesture of support from Brussels. They took place at a moment when Europe’s security architecture is undergoing a profound transformation.
Armenia scales up cooperation with the EU
The symbolism of holding these summits in Armenia – a country long considered Russia’s closest ally in the South Caucasus – is difficult to overstate. Armenia is a member of Russian-led organizations such as the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). It is also heavily dependent on Russia for energy resources, purchasing Russian gas at preferential rates, while Moscow maintains a military base on Armenian territory.
For example, Vladimir Putin has pointed out that Russia supplies gas to Armenia at around $177.5 per 1,000 cubic meters, significantly below market levels in Europe, where prices have at times reached $600.
As Alexander Iskandaryan, a political scientist and Director of the Yerevan-based Caucasus Institute, said in a conversation, “85% of gas is coming to Armenia from Russia”.
“In sphere of economy, still we are connected with Russia. But the culture is different. You know, I teach, and maybe more than half of my students, they speak English better than Russian… So – less dependence on Russia, more relations with Europe. This is a real process which we have,” he admitted.
However, the turning point came during the 2020 war with Azerbaijan, when the CSTO failed to provide any assistance to Armenia despite its obligations as a military-political alliance. This led to a reassessment in Yerevan: the existing security architecture was no longer functioning.
As a result, in March 2025 the Armenian parliament adopted a law to begin the process of EU accession, while the peace process with Azerbaijan accelerated.
Armenia is also diversifying its security partnerships beyond Russia. In recent years, India has emerged as a key defence partner, supplying artillery systems, rocket launchers and other military equipment, as Yerevan seeks more reliable alternatives.
The war in Ukraine is no longer a regional conflict
Throughout the summit, as reported by Mahabahu, Ukraine was not treated as a separate issue but as a reference point.
European Council President António Costa directly linked the need for a new security approach to the war: “The geopolitical situation in Europe, with the ongoing Russian war of aggression against Ukraine and the conflict in the Middle East, demonstrates that our continent needs a 360-degree vision for its security.”
This explains the tone of the discussions: energy, migration and trade are no longer seen as separate policy areas – they are all part of security.
“We are now facing a war on two fronts. We’re going into the fifth year of the Ukraine war, and we’ve got the Iran conflict at the same time, and both of those are impacting all of us in a very material way. The impact is not just economic, … there are proxy attacks … on our streets … by way of cyber-attacks. So, this is not something remote. It’s very real.,” UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the situation even more bluntly.
For Starmer, the conclusion is clear: Europe must take on more responsibility in defence, energy and economic resilience. The UK has also officially begun negotiations to join the EU’s €90 billion loan program for Ukraine.
Over-dependencies and hybrid risks
Energy security remains one of the central issues. Europe has already reduced its dependence on Russian gas, but the debate has shifted to a broader question of strategic dependencies – including defence supply chains, semiconductors, and critical raw materials.
“The Russian war against Ukraine revealed our over-dependencies regarding gas… We are experiencing the cost of our over-dependencies when we speak about the American umbrella in terms of defence and security. Let’s be honest, this is the elephant in the room,” French President Emmanuel Macron framed it as a systemic problem.
His proposed response is not isolation, but risk reduction through investment, coordination and diversification.
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola stressed that disinformation and cyber threats are now central to security: “These are no longer remote risks… Wars are not only fought on the ground, but they’re also fought in the digital sphere.”
Just days before the EPC summit, Russia banned imports of Armenian mineral water. The claims against the Armenian product emerged shortly after a meeting between Nikol Pashinyan and Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin. Such actions are widely perceived as manifestations of hybrid pressure.
Analysts monitoring Armenia’s information space reported coordinated disinformation spikes on Telegram, promoting a single narrative: that hosting European summits would be a “point of no return” for Armenia and would trigger punishment from Russia.
Olha Konsevych: Journalist, researcher; Vital Voices; GMF; WZB Berlin ; Max Planck Society alumna ;Mahabahu Correspondent
Mahabahu.com is an Online Magazine with collection of premium Assamese and English articles and posts with cultural base and modern thinking. You can send your articles to editor@mahabahu.com / editor@mahabahoo.com (For Assamese article, Unicode font is necessary) Images from different sources.
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