Pashinyan cited the election campaign as the reason for his refusal to attend the Moscow parade.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced that he will not attend the Victory Day Parade in Moscow because he will be campaigning for the parliamentary elections. The statement comes amid dissatisfaction with Armenia's actions, voiced by Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot," Armenia's Central Election Commission registered all 19 political forces that applied to participate in the parliamentary elections. Meanwhile, Tigran Urikhanyan, the top candidate on the Alliance Party list, and blogger Vardan Ghukasyan, who held the top spot on the Democracy, Law, and Discipline Party list, were denied registration due to their lack of citizenship and proof of residency in the country for the past four years.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced that he will not participate in Victory Day events on May 9 in Moscow.

"In April, during my visit to the Russian Federation, I informed the President [Vladimir Putin] that due to election campaigning, I would not be able to participate in the events marking May 9. We have already announced that we will participate in the campaign," Novosti Armenia quoted him as saying.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has received an invitation to participate in the May 9 parade in Moscow, according to Russian Ambassador to Armenia Sergey Kopyrkin. According to him, the invitations were sent to "all fraternal countries," Armenia Today reported on May 6.

Pashinyan's refusal comes amid discontent among Russian authorities

The Armenian authorities have broken their promise not to take action against Russia, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova told reporters at a briefing.

"The Armenian leadership... and, by the way, during their recent visits to Moscow, they assured that they would not take any action against Russia. If this is the case with their assurances, then it means that the Armenian leadership is behaving this way not only in Moscow and not only with Russian citizens, failing to keep their promises," RIA Novosti quoted her as saying today.

"Caucasian Knot" also reported that the eighth summit of the European Political Community was held in Yerevan, with the participation of approximately 50 delegations at the level of heads of state and other organizations. On May 4 and 5, the first Armenia-EU summit was held in the Armenian capital. The European Union was represented by European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Armenian and Karabakh public organizations and parties called on the EU representatives who arrived in Yerevan to promote the preservation of cultural values ​​in Karabakh and the protection of the rights of refugees.

The first Armenia-EU summit, which concluded in Yerevan, gave Armenian opposition political forces reason to accuse Nikol Pashinyan of election manipulation, and Moscow media of "betrayal" and an anti-Russian course.