US President Donald Trump expressed on Thursday his “complete and total endorsement for re-election” of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in the upcoming election, the first time a US president has endorsed a candidate in a country on Russia’s regional orbit.
In a post on his Truth Social network, Trump called Pashinyan a “great friend and leader,” adding that he is “making his country strong, wealthy, and very secure” ahead of Armenia’s decisive elections on 7 June, fiercely contested between the Armenian premier's camp and the opposing forces supported by Russia.
Referring to Pashinyan signing a historic peace agreement at the White House with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev last year, Trump said that “Nikol completely shares my vision of peace and prosperity for Armenia and the entire South Caucasus region”.
The Armenian PM thanked Trump “for the high appreciation,” adding the US and Armenian flags side by side in his brief response on X.
Trump linked his rare endorsement to the “strategic” deals signed earlier this week in Yerevan by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his Armenian counterpart, signalling the reinforced US involvement in the region.
