Armenia`s premier quite capable of alienating Armenia from West -  Hovsep Khurshudyan 

ArmInfo.Regretfully, the decisions of crucial importance for Armenia are made obeying the will of one person rather than are based on geopolitical analyses by  specialized thinks tanks, Hovsep Khurshudyan, Chairman of the Free  Citizen NGO, told ArmInfo. 

"For example, Nikol Pashinyan made a decision on dispatch of our  troops to Kazakhstan as a result of just one phone call - all by  himself.  He made that snap decision with a receiver in his hand. So,  in a certain mood, he is capable of making Armenia even more  dependent on Russia and just sending our country outside the orbit of  the West," the expert said. 

According to him, should the West's role, which is balancing out  Russia in the South Caucasus, be diminished, it would prove seriously  detrimental to Armenia. Among other things, in the context of  restoration of its territorial integrity, settlement of the issue of  a "corridor" via Syunik, border demarcation, etc..  Meanwhile,  relative regional balance between Russia and the West has so far been  sustained - especially after the Biden Administration came to power  in the USA. 

According to the expert, the pro-Armenian bills and resolutions  recently approved in the USA and Europe have afforded Armenia  opportunities for maneuvering. However, due to Yerevan's pro-Russian  decisions on Kazakhstan, these opportunities are being seriously  limited. The greatest threat is possible additional territorial and  "corridor"-related risks for Armenia.

In its turn, Moscow is using "hybrid diplomacy" and a policy toward  Armenia, which is rather similar to its policy toward Ankara, its  only goal being to alienate both the states from the West and cause  their leaders' relations with Washington and Brussels to deteriorate.  The difference is that Russia has to pay to Turkey, and the cost is  rather heavy - for example, by supplying S-400 missile systems and  constructing an NPP at Akkuyu. Meeanwhile, Armenia is worsening its  relations with the West "free of charge" by being involved in  Russia's operations in Kazakhstan. 

"We, to be precise, our authorities, are responsible for this  situation. They have accustomed the Kremlin to their being willing to  obey any orders by the Kremlin. But I cannot understand what  Armenia's incumbent authorities are obeying these orders for after  they proved their being legitimate not long ago, last June. The  authorities having rather solid domestic grounds are capable of being  much more independent in their foreign policy. I cannot see any  objective reasons for the incumbent Armenian authorities to  obediently implement Moscow's projects at the expense of their own  reputation in the civilized world," Mr Khurshudyan said.