On January 9th local time, Russian presidential press secretary Peskov stated that Armenia's possible accession to the EU is its sovereign right; however, Armenia cannot simultaneously be a member of both the EU and the Eurasian Economic Union. On the same day, the Armenian government approved the bill to initiate the country's process of joining the EU. The Armenian parliament will begin discussions on the bill at the end of this month. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that the approval of this bill does not mean that Armenia will directly gain EU membership; the decision on whether to join the EU can only be made through a referendum. However, before the referendum, Armenia needs to discuss the roadmap for joining the EU with the EU. (CCTV News)