Kremlin spokesperson: Armenia has not declared plans to leave CSTO

PanARMENIAN.Net - Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated that the recent discussions between Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Russian President Vladimir Putin did not address the topic of Armenia’s re-engagement in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).

“The CSTO is an independent, mature, and well-established organization that has proven its effectiveness and relevance. Its work continues,” he said.

Peskov added that Yerevan has not yet declared any intention to leave the organization, according to Izvestiya.

The CSTO is a regional intergovernmental alliance comprising six post-Soviet countries: Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan. Its primary objective is to ensure member states’ defense against external armed threats.

Previously, on December 18, 2024, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev suggested that Armenia would leave the CSTO if given the green light from Washington. However, during a government session in parliament on December 4, Nikol Pashinyan stated that Armenia considers itself outside the CSTO and no longer participates in its decision-making processes.

In November, Armenia’s parliament evaluated the likelihood of leaving the CSTO. Parliament speaker’s spokesperson Movses Harutyunyan noted that Armenia had frozen its participation in the organization, and this position remains unchanged.

Furthermore, in September, Armenia raised concerns about threats to its sovereignty from the CSTO, citing the organization’s lack of response to the country’s issues.

Later, Dmitry Peskov refuted claims that the CSTO threatens Armenia’s sovereignty, emphasizing that the organization protects its members’ independence. He reiterated that Armenia retains the sovereign right to choose its strategic and tactical approaches regarding cooperation with the CSTO.

Tensions between Armenia and the CSTO escalated in November 2022 when Nikol Pashinyan declined to sign the CSTO Security Council’s draft declaration on joint measures to support Armenia, arguing that it lacked a clear political assessment of the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh.