There are questions regarding the CSTO that need to be clarified in connection with Jermuk and Vardenis, Narek Karapetyan, head of the Strong Armenia faction, said in the National Assembly.
“If there is an alternative to the CSTO, present it,” he said, addressing the Civil Contract party, Panorama.am reported.
The National Assembly discussed a bill on ratifying the agreement “On the Procedure for Organizing and Conducting International Controlled Deliveries by Competent Authorities of Member States of the Commonwealth of Independent States.” Karapetyan said his faction would vote against it.
He also said: “When speaking about national interests, do not remove the term ‘national’ from the oath of government members; do not remove nation, people or obligations to the people. It is a basic message to the head of government that he must be accountable to and serve his people.”
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has said it is unrealistic to expect a change regarding Armenia’s return to the CSTO. During his meeting with Putin in Moscow on April 1, Pashinyan said: “We have never concealed our position regarding the CSTO, because in 2022 we had a specific situation. And, in my view, CSTO mechanisms should have been activated, but they were not, and that, of course, led to the situation we now have in our relations with the CSTO. We are currently not participating in CSTO activities for a simple reason: to this day, we are unable to explain to our people, our citizens, why the CSTO did not respond, and did not respond despite the obligations that exist under the Collective Security Treaty.”
