CSTO ‘may withdraw from Armenia,’ according to PM Pashinyan
Armenia may withdraw from CSTO (Photo:Michel EulerPool via REUTERS)
As tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan rise, Armenia may withdraw from the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has said in an interview with Armenian news agency Armenpress.
"Recently, as a consequence of meetings with a number of CSTO colleagues, I discovered that the CSTO also tracks the rapid development of some public opinions in Armenia,” Pashinyan said.
“During the conversation, it was even mentioned that Armenia is considering leaving the CSTO. I stated the reverse, that there are fears that the CSTO will withdraw from Armenia.”
He said that this is "not just a word play; it has a very serious connotation.
"Pashinyan said that during an earlier CSTO debate on security issues, he had obtained explicit guarantees that Armenia's border was a red line for the CSTO.
“When the events in Sotq and Khoznavar (in Nagorno-Karabakh) occurred last year, we naturally turned to the CSTO, only to be told that the line is not marked or delimited. As a result, the question of where the red line is in this case arose.”
He went on to say that Armenia had already expressed the need for a definitive answer to this question.
“This is significant not only for Armenia, but also for the CSTO, because if there is no border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, there will be no CSTO, because the CSTO has a zone of responsibility that is bounded by borders. There is no organization if there is no border, and there is no zone of responsibility if there is no border.”
He said that regardless of whether the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan is defined, state borders are formed and known by coordinates under the Dec. 18, 1991 agreement signed by the Armenian and Azerbaijani parliaments.
“They are asking the wrong question when they ask whether Armenia will leave the CSTO. The question is whether or not the CSTO will withdraw from Armenia. To put it another way, would the CSTO fix its red line, its zone of responsibility, in Armenia?”
Pashinyan stressed the importance of the CSTO developing a clear political assessment of the situation.
"That is, the act of aggression against Armenia should be documented, and a clear strategy for eliminating the repercussions of the act of aggression should be revealed. And this should strengthen the already-established red line, which is the foundation of the CSTO.”
New tensions arose on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border on the night of Sept. 13 – more than 170 soldiers from both sides were killed in fighting in just a few days.
Yerevan accused Azerbaijan of "large-scale provocations." In return, the Azerbaijani authorities said that their shelling was "in response to Armenia's aggression and sabotage."
As the situation with Azerbaijan deteriorated, Armenia requested assistance from Russia and the CSTO.
The CSTO has previously refused to provide Armenia with military assistance in Nagorno-Karabakh, the Armenian enclave in Azerbaijan.
Armenia condemned Russia's and the CSTO's lack of response to Yerevan's plea for aid, stating that it would "draw conclusions.
"Although the parties continue to shell each other, a ceasefire has been agreed
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