Elen Hoyekyan, Senior Expert at the 'Women and Global Security Architecture Think Tank,' notes that the European Union considers Armenia the most value-aligned country in the region and offers access to a 450-million market. She also highlights Russia's perception of Armenia as its sphere of influence, driven by critical dependencies. According to Hoyekyan, Russia does not view Armenia as an independent state, and if their preferred forces do not win, Russia will attempt to punish Armenia by utilizing its leverage within the EAEU (Eurasian Economic Union). Russia will continue to exert pressure on Armenia, as it is unwilling to lose its proxies. Regarding oligarch Samvel Karapetyan's 'secret plan,' Hoyekyan notes that if the opposition had the necessary capabilities, they would have taken to the streets immediately after the elections.