Pashinyan: the issue of withdrawing the Russian military base from Gyumri is not being discussed in Armenia
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that the issue of withdrawing the Russian military base located in Gyumri is not being discussed. He spoke about this in an interview with The Wall Street Journal (WSJ).
At the same time, the politician indicated that he does not see any benefits for the country from placing a Russian military base on its territory.
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The Russian 102nd military base in Armenia is located in the city of Gyumri in the Shirak region in accordance with the interstate agreement of 1995.
In 2010, changes were made to the document, according to which the term of her stay was extended from the original 25 years to 49 years – until 2044.
In May 2021, two base strongholds were founded in the south of Armenia.
Armenia is thinking about leaving the CSTO
Pashinyan said that the republic is now looking for new partners, since Moscow “was unable to fulfill its allied obligations.” The prime minister noted that after Nagorno-Karabakh came under the control of Baku, Yerevan decided that it needed to diversify its security relations. “And we’re trying to do that now,” he added.
The politician noted that the parties are currently at the stage of discussing issues of understanding positions.
Armenia does not want to make a mistake
In May, Pashinyan allowed the country to leave the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) if Yerevan considered it an “incompetent organization.” “If Armenia de jure decides to withdraw from the CSTO, this will happen after Armenia records that the CSTO has left Armenia,” he said then.
The Prime Minister emphasized that such a decision by Yerevan is possible if the organization becomes “inactive.” “Then we will have to decide our own security issues,” he concluded.
State Duma deputy Alexei Chepa noted that Armenia’s possible withdrawal from the CSTO would be fraught with serious consequences for the country, and such a step would also be extremely unpleasant for Moscow. According to the parliamentarian, if such a decision is made, Pashinyan will not be able to retain power.
Pashinyan accuses the CSTO of refusing assistance
On October 17, speaking at a meeting of the European Parliament, Pashinyan said that the organization did not help Armenia during the conflict with Azerbaijan in 2021.
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At the same time, in May, the Prime Minister of Armenia announced his readiness to recognize Nagorno-Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan, subject to ensuring the security of the Armenian population. According to him, Armenia recognizes the territory of Azerbaijan of 86,600 square kilometers, which includes Karabakh.
As Russian President Vladimir Putin noted, Armenia essentially recognized the sovereignty of Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh. He recalled that Armenia recorded the territorial status of Karabakh in the Prague Statement. The head of state emphasized that this was not Moscow’s decision, but Yerevan’s. “What should we say here? There is nothing to say here. If Armenia itself recognized that Karabakh is part of Azerbaijan,” he concluded.
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