Expert questions Trump`s decision to meet privately with Aliyev but  not Pashinyan in Davos

ArmInfo. Suren Sargsyan, expert on American studies, has pointed out the diplomatic disparity at the World Economic Forum in Davos, noting that U.S.  President Donald Trump held a private meeting with Azerbaijani  President Ilham Aliyev while bypassing Armenian Prime Minister Nikol  Pashinyan.

In his Facebook post, the expert noted while Prime Minister Pashinyan  participated in the signing ceremony for the Board of Peace for Gaza  Charter-sitting near Trump and participating in group photos-these  moments were largely ceremonial (as per protocol, in alphabetical  order, with the host in the middle.).  Sargsyan argued that while  these photos are useful for "domestic PR" to mask the absence of  high-level engagement, they do not substitute for a formal bilateral  meeting.

 "I still don't understand why Trump didn't have a private meeting  with the Armenian Prime Minister, while he did meet with the  Azerbaijani President. The US usually always tries to maintain  balance. Moreover, Trump and Aliyev discussed the TRIPP initiative  (which is supposed to pass through southern Armenia - ed.).  Incidentally, Trump only had two one-one-one meetings in Davos: with  Aliyev and Zelenskyy (not counting the NATO Secretary General)," he  noted.