The Armenian Parliament has approved the bill for joining the EU in its first reading.

The document was voted on by representatives of the ruling faction "Civil Contract." The opposition faction "Armenia" did not participate in the voting. Another faction, "I Have Honor," which is also in opposition, voted against.

In early January, the Armenian parliament approved a bill to initiate the application process for EU membership. Russia stated that this move would make Armenia's membership in the Eurasian Economic Union—a customs bloc led by Moscow—untenable. "Armenia is ready to be closer to the EU as much as the EU considers it possible. We have seen signs that this is feasible," said the country's Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan at that time.

It is claimed that the initiator of the bill's consideration in parliament is the civic initiative "Platform of Democratic Forces." Over the course of two months, it gathered 60,000 signatures, which were necessary to submit the document for the deputies' review.