Armenia may decide to leave EAEU when such membership becomes incomparable with membership in EU - Pashinyan

YEREVAN. Jan 14 (Interfax) - Armenia may decide to leave the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) at a referendum when its membership in the EAEU becomes incomparable with membership in the EU, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said.

"We are aware that we cannot be a member of the EAEU and the EU at the same time. Yes, we aspire to join the European Union," Pashinyan said at the Armenia and the World at the Crossroads of Risks and Opportunities debates attended by the U.S. and EU ambassadors.

The current reality "gives space both for advancing on this path [EU membership] and for continued membership in the EAEU," he said.

"This is the territory we are in today. We clearly state that we are on our way to the EU. For now, we are a member of the EAEU. This means there is no incomparability at this stage. We will remain a member of the EAEU for as long as comparability is possible. As soon as this is no longer possible, and we know this, we will, together with the citizens, decide based on the free expression of the will of the Armenian people. We have a choice; democracy is our strategy. A democratic country strives to be among democracies," Pashinyan said.