Pashinyan’s attempts to drag CSTO into territorial disputes with Azerbaijan are provocative, expert says

Speaking with Alpha News, military expert Boris Rozhin commented on the misunderstandings between Armenia and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) regarding the state borders of Armenia.

According to the expert, the attempts of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s regime to drag the CSTO into territorial disputes with Azerbaijan are obviously provocative in nature and are used to justify the exit from the CSTO.

“If we talk about Armenia’s claims regarding the protection of certain borders, we should note that at the moment, Armenia itself admits that part of its borders with Azerbaijan is not delimited, and that is why Armenia is negotiating with Azerbaijan regarding its own state borders, including issues of handing over its territories, such as the four villages in the Tavush province. Armenia actually admits that these demands are justified and is ready to discuss them with Azerbaijan. The attempts of Nikol Pashinyan’s regime to drag the CSTO into territorial disputes with Azerbaijan are obviously provocative in nature and are used to justify the course of quitting the CSTO, which is being pursued quite consistently by Pashinyan,” Rozhin said.

According to the expert, the CSTO cannot be a party to the dispute over non-delimited sections of the border because this is a dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

“Both sides recognize the existence of this dispute, and the CSTO simply throws the ball around and says that it only protects those borders that belong to Armenia. If Armenia itself believes that part of its borders is not delimited, Azerbaijan has the right to challenge them, but the CSTO has no right to prevent Armenia and Azerbaijan from discussing who owns certain sections of the border. Armenia itself opened this door without consulting with the CSTO on this issue and is now trying to drag the organization into these disputes, obviously with provocative purposes,” Rozhin concluded.