MOSCOW, April 5 The US and the European Union are seeking Armenia’s exit from the CSTO and the EAEU, as well as the withdrawal of Russian border guards from the republic, follows from a statement on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
«Washington and Brussels — under ephemeral promises — are seeking Armenia's withdrawal from the CSTO and the EAEU, the withdrawal of the Russian military base and border guards. We call on the leadership in Yerevan not to allow the West to deceive itself and lead the country along the wrong path, fraught with the emergence of a security vacuum and serious problems in the economy and population outflow,” the department said.
The Foreign Ministry emphasized that Moscow views the recent meeting between Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and representatives of the United States and the EU as an attempt by the collective West to drag the South Caucasus into a geopolitical confrontation.
A joint meeting on cooperation between the EU and the United States with Armenia was held on Friday in Brussels. The American side was represented by Secretary of State Antony Blinken, the European side by EU diplomacy head Josep Borrell and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The latter, even before the meeting, promised to allocate 270 million euros to Yerevan for development over the next four years.
«The intervention of extra-regional forces, <…> the desire to drive a wedge between <…> neighbors can result in the most negative consequences for stability, security and economic development in the region, provoke the emergence of new dividing lines, as well as an uncontrolled increase in tension «, the ministry said.
It also noted that promises of support from Brussels cannot be compared with the multi-billion dollar benefits from cooperation with Russia in the EAEU and the CIS.
In addition, the Foreign Ministry believes that the United States and the European Union put pressure on Armenia, so it suspended the implementation of agreements, on many of which the parties almost reached a common decision.
“The West is not abandoning attempts to destroy the fundamental basis of Armenian-Azerbaijani normalization — a set of trilateral statements by the leaders of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan for 2020-2022, providing for measures to unblock transport and economic ties, delimitate the border, prepare a peace treaty, and build trust through contacts between social activists and experts “, the diplomatic department emphasized.
Nevertheless, Moscow is ready to help achieve peace between Yerevan and Baku and calls for adhering to the principle of “regional responsibility” agreed upon at the second meeting of the “3+3” consultative platform on October 23 last year in Tehran.
“We urge external players to respect these agreements, and the authorities in Yerevan, when building a foreign policy line, to take into account the concerns of neighboring states,” the ministry summarized.
Aggravation of relations with Armenia Recently, Armenia has been reducing its participation in organizations in the former USSR. Thus, in October last year, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan did not go to the intergovernmental councils of the EAEU and the CIS in Bishkek, and then did not appear at the CIS summit. In November, he refused to take part in the CSTO summit in Minsk.
In addition, in mid-February the politician announced the suspension of membership in this association. In his opinion, the Collective Security Treaty in relation to the republic was allegedly not implemented, “especially in 2021-2022.” In March, Pashinyan said that the republic could leave the organization if the latter does not answer the questions raised by Yerevan regarding the sovereign territory of the country.
In turn, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova called the statements of the Armenian leadership about the CSTO insulting and ultimatum. As the Foreign Ministry recalled, in September 2022, at the request of Yerevan, an assessment mission of the secretariat and the joint headquarters of the organization was promptly formed and sent to the border areas of the country. As a result, the Collective Security Council decided to deploy a monitoring mission in the republic, but the Armenian authorities rejected it and preferred to invite pseudo-observers from the EU.
Nevertheless, Moscow still proceeds from the fact that Yerevan continues to remain a full member of the CSTO with all the ensuing rights and obligations, the ministry emphasized.