US President Donald Trump voiced support on Wednesday for Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in the upcoming elections, which polls show as an exceedingly tight race.
The June 7 parliamentary vote is seen as a litmus test for Pashinyan’s moves to loosen Armenian dependence on Moscow while forging closer ties with the West.
The South Caucasus nation is also still reeling from Azerbaijan‘s 2023 military takeover of the Karabakh region and the mass exodus of its 100,000 ethnic Armenians.
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Armenia agreed as part of a US-brokered peace deal to establish a transit corridor through its territory that would connect Azerbaijan with its Nakhchivan exclave – dubbed the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP).
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said “soon, the United States and Armenia will break ground together” on the TRIPP, “which will transform the South Caucasus, and help our wonderful American Energy Companies gain access from Central Asia all the way to the United States”.
He called Pashinyan “a great friend and Leader” who was “making his Country strong, wealthy, and very secure!”
“Nikol completely shares my vision of PEACE and PROSPERITY for Armenia and the entire South Caucasus region,” Trump wrote.
“For these reasons, Nikol has my COMPLETE and TOTAL Endorsement for Re-Election on June 7, 2026,” Trump said, copying his favored formulation for his frequent domestic political endorsements.
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Pashinyan thanked Trump in an X post Thursday for his “high appreciation and friendly words”.
The endorsement comes a day after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Armenia on a return trip from his multi-day tour of India.
Trump, in his post on Wednesday, said that Rubio had “advanced several important Deals for both our Countries”.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
