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Hayk Mamijanyan, head of the opposition Pativ Unem parliamentary faction which is part of the former ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), defended former President Serzh Sargsyan’s decision to incorporate Armenia into the EAEU, dismissing criticism that it distanced the country from European integration.

“It was a balanced decision which was not made overnight,” he told reporters on Thursday.

The opposition MP insisted that the EAEU membership greatly benefited Armenia’s economy.

Separately, he said his faction had not yet decided whether to support or reject a bill calling for Armenia to launch a bid to join the European Union.

“The RPA’s parliamentary faction will unveil its stance once the bill makes it to the parliament,” the MP noted.

“But I hope that the political groups behind this proposal will be honest with the public and acknowledge that there has been no positive response from the EU, except for a few statements from members of the European Parliament. We have not received any formal invitation to join the EU. I hope the proponents of this bill will admit that they are selling false hope and misleading the public,” Mamijanyan added.