Prime Minister Nicole Pashinyan has been the subject of ridicule in Yerevan, who has recently been intensely criticised for his government’s handling of the recent conflict with Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh. 

Several commenters on Twitter and other social media have stated in recent days that the Pashinyan government “continues to demonstrate its brilliant diplomatic prowess” by undermining Armenia’s regional position and destroying the already weakened cooperation with Russia.

This is because, on November 21, during a series of meetings between the Russian delegation including Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Armenian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, the latter “accidentally” forgot to have the Russian flag in the room, something usually done in such meetings. 

If one considers that Russia is the only real ally left in Armenia, which has stopped a devastating war for the Armenian army literally at the last minute, then the absence of the Russian flag from the hall is indulgently unjustifiable. 

Commenting on what is being heard regarding the flag case, Armenian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Anna Nagdalian told reporters that “there was no violation of diplomatic protocol” and that this was Yerevan’s usual practice during high-level meetings. 

However, the fact that the Russian flag appeared in photos after the media drew attention to the incident refutes Yerevan’s claims… 

Also read: Nagorno – Karabakh | The mobilization, the UAVs, the air defence and the mistakes that led to the defeat