The ARF Armenian Cause Central Council has issued a statement responding to remarks by Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova concerning Artsakh and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).

According to the statement, Zakharova said the CSTO could not become involved in the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh because Armenia had recognized the territory neither as part of its own state nor as an independent country, meaning there were no legal grounds to activate the organization's mechanisms.

The ARF Armenian Cause Central Council, however, stressed that Armenia did not request CSTO assistance during the 44-day war. It also argued that the assertion that Armenia did not recognize the territory as an independent state is inaccurate, while equally rejecting the opposite claim that Armenia had de jure recognized the Republic of Artsakh.

The statement further says that the co-chairing countries of the OSCE Minsk Group—the United States, Russia, and France—consistently maintained that the settlement of the Artsakh issue should take place exclusively within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group process. According to the council, these countries sought to prevent both the international recognition of Artsakh and the transfer of the issue to other negotiating formats, while emphasizing that the use or threat of force should be excluded.

The council also stated that Armenia did not officially, de jure, recognize the Republic of Artsakh in order to preserve the negotiation process. At the same time, it said Armenia treated Artsakh as a de facto established state entity, maintaining broad cooperation characteristic of interstate relations, including diplomatic representation, interstate loans, intergovernmental, interparliamentary and interagency agreements, exchanges of official delegations, and mutual recognition of state positions.

"The response by the head of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry's press service to the Moscow representative's statement, claiming that 'the Karabakh region has always been recognized by the international community, including the Russian Federation, as an integral part of Azerbaijan,' is incorrect and constitutes a distortion of the facts. All settlement proposals presented by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries, particularly since November 2007, included a roadmap for implementing the right of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh to self-determination.

"We consider it necessary to make these clarifications for both our people and the international community because these facts also underpin the right of the people of Artsakh to return, as affirmed by the International Court of Justice. The ARF Armenian Cause network is using all its capabilities to support the realization of that right," the statement said.