Pashinyan: "Armenia will leave the CSTO if necessary"

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated during the recent election debates that the country does not plan to renew full membership in the CSTO and may eventually leave the military-political bloc.

"We will leave the CSTO. There's no need to intimidate us. We will make our own decision," Pashinyan emphasized, commenting on a question posed by Narek Karapetyan, a parliamentary candidate from the opposition Strong Armenia party.

During the debate, the head of the Armenian government also mentioned Samvel Karapetyan, calling him "Karapetyan from Kaluga," and noted that he "will not leave Armenia for quite a long time." Pashinyan added that Karapetyan, currently accused of money laundering, will be held accountable, among other things, for inflated electricity bills in educational institutions, schools, and military units in Armenia.

In 2023, Armenia abstained from participating in the CSTO summit and canceled exercises planned on its territory. In September 2024, Yerevan officially suspended its participation in the organization after Pashinyan criticized the CSTO for refusing to assist Armenia during the period when Azerbaijan occupied part of Nagorno-Karabakh.

The Collective Security Treaty, which formed the foundation of the CSTO, was signed in 1992 and transformed into an organization in 2002. The bloc's current members are Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.

As a reminder, parliamentary elections in Armenia will be held on June 7. Samvel Karapetyan, the leader of the Strong Armenia party and billionaire Russian citizen, known for his pro-Kremlin views and opposition to the current government, is under house arrest in Yerevan on charges of inciting a coup d'état and money laundering. His name was previously mentioned in The Insider's investigation into alleged Russian interference in the Armenian elections, which alleged his possible ties to the FSB. Karapetyan denied the allegations, calling the publication false and politically motivated.

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