By AFP | 2024-04-09

BRUSSELS -- The European Union has pledged a €270 million ($290 million) financial package for Armenia, seeking along with Washington to boost ties with Yerevan as its relations with Russia crumble.

The announcement came April 5 after talks in Brussels aimed at ramping up cooperation among Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Armenia, a former Soviet republic in the Caucasus, is looking to solidify economic support from the West as it edges away from traditional ally Russia.

Von der Leyen said the four-year "resilience and growth" package of financial grants for Armenia showed the European Union (EU) stood "shoulder to shoulder" with Yerevan.

"Europe and Armenia share a long and common history, and the time has come to write now a new chapter," she said.

Expanding Western partnerships

The meeting in Brussels was proof of Armenia's "expanding partnership" with the EU and United States, said Pashinyan.

"I believe that our shared vision of a democratic, peaceful and prosperous future will continue to serve as the backbone and the guiding star of our mutually trusted relations," he said.

The United States is bolstering its economic support for Yerevan to $65 million this year to aid efforts to make Armenia "a strong, independent nation at peace with its neighbors," said Blinken.

"We have to harness this moment of choice for the Armenian people and for its leaders," he said.

Armenia has drawn Russia's ire by criticizing its role as a regional security guarantor and even floating the idea of applying to join the EU.