ISTANBUL

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday said actions taken by President Donald Trump soon after his inauguration show the methods he will employ to advance the interests of the US.

“Many political scientists are commenting on the decisions that were announced by President Trump. I will say briefly that this is obviously an indicator of the methods by which President Trump and his administration will deliberately advance the interests of the US on the world stage,” Lavrov told a joint news conference in Moscow following talks with his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan.

On Monday, his first day in office, Trump signed dozens of executive orders, including on beginning the country's withdrawal from the WHO and Paris climate agreement, pardoning those who attacked the US Capitol four years ago, and declaring a national emergency at the US-Mexico border. He said he could impose 25% duties on Canada and Mexico on Feb. 1.

Expressing that Washington's interests on the world stage have not changed regardless of who is in the White House, Lavrov said it wants to “always be stronger than any competitor.”

Commenting on potential talks between Trump and President Vladimir Putin, Lavrov said both leaders have already indicated their readiness to hold a meeting.

Russian-Armenian ties

Speaking about his discussion with Mirzoyan, Lavrov said he had not held such detailed negotiations with him on bilateral matters for a long time, during which he conveyed Russia’s commitment to all of its agreements with Armenia.

“For our part, we emphasized our commitment to the entire range of agreements with Yerevan, including in the military-political sphere, which were formalized at the bilateral level and within the framework of our common integration associations,” Lavrov said.

The Russian foreign minister said Moscow is also interested in its bilateral relations with Yerevan not being negatively impacted by extra-regional players who are “not interested in the strengthening of the Russian-Armenian alliance.”

Lavrov said he and Mirzoyan were able to reach “mutually acceptable solutions” on a whole range of issues.

He said he confirmed Russia’s readiness to help Armenia and Azerbaijan normalize their ties, including assistance with regards to developing provisions for matters such as the peace treaty being currently discussed by both countries.

For his part, Mirzoyan underlined the alliance between Russia and Armenia, saying there is no talk of any deadlines or specific mechanisms with regards to the draft law to initiate the country's EU membership application process.

Earlier this month, the Armenian government approved a draft law to initiate the country's EU membership application process, with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan saying a final decision will be taken through a national referendum.