Armenia Abandoned By Russia and other ex-Soviet allies, said Pashinyan
03 January 2023
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian has again criticized Russia and other ex-Soviet allies of Armenia for not defending it against what Yerevan regards as Azerbaijani military aggression – this is reported by the Armenian service of Radio Liberty (Radio Azatutyun).
Armenia appealed to Russia and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) for support during the September clashes along its border with Azerbaijan which left at least 224 Armenian soldiers dead. Armenian leaders afterwards accused the Russian-led alliance of ignoring the appeal in breach of its statutes.
The CSTO proposed what its outgoing Secretary General Stanislav Zas called a set of “measures to assist Armenia in this difficult situation” during a summit held in Yerevan in November. However, Pashinian vetoed a corresponding decision by the leaders of Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, citing the absence of any language condemning Azerbaijan.
Zas said in December that the proposed measures included “military-technical assistance”. He declined to specify the types of weapons which other CSTO member states were prepared to send to Armenia.
Pashinian renewed his criticism of the CSTO amid growing friction between Moscow and Yerevan caused by the closure of traffic on the only road connecting the Karabakh with Armenia.
Pashinian said Moscow should come up with a plan to unblock the corridor or seek a larger and multinational peacekeeping mission in Karabakh.
Russian officials rejected the criticism. They also denounced some Armenian officials’ claims that Moscow is using the three-week blockade to try to force Armenia to join the “union state” of Russia and Belarus and open an “exterritorial corridor” to Azerbaijan’s Nakhichevan exclave, the radio service said.
Armenia appealed to Russia and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) for support during the September clashes along its border with Azerbaijan which left at least 224 Armenian soldiers dead. Armenian leaders afterwards accused the Russian-led alliance of ignoring the appeal in breach of its statutes.
The CSTO proposed what its outgoing Secretary General Stanislav Zas called a set of “measures to assist Armenia in this difficult situation” during a summit held in Yerevan in November. However, Pashinian vetoed a corresponding decision by the leaders of Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, citing the absence of any language condemning Azerbaijan.
Zas said in December that the proposed measures included “military-technical assistance”. He declined to specify the types of weapons which other CSTO member states were prepared to send to Armenia.
Pashinian renewed his criticism of the CSTO amid growing friction between Moscow and Yerevan caused by the closure of traffic on the only road connecting the Karabakh with Armenia.
Pashinian said Moscow should come up with a plan to unblock the corridor or seek a larger and multinational peacekeeping mission in Karabakh.
Russian officials rejected the criticism. They also denounced some Armenian officials’ claims that Moscow is using the three-week blockade to try to force Armenia to join the “union state” of Russia and Belarus and open an “exterritorial corridor” to Azerbaijan’s Nakhichevan exclave, the radio service said.
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