The CSTO Secretary General urged not to anticipate the events surrounding Armenia’s withdrawal from the organization

It is not advisable to anticipate the events surrounding Yerevan’s withdrawal from the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), as there is the opinion of the country’s leadership, and there is the opinion of the Armenian people. This was stated by Taalatbek Masadykov, CSTO Secretary General, in an interview with TASS.

In response to the question about what decision can be expected from the November meeting of the Collective Security Council regarding Armenia’s membership in the CSTO, the Secretary General noted that decisions on whether to “exclude or not to exclude” a member state from the organization are made by the heads of state of the CSTO member states. “As the Secretariat, we cannot make a decision on behalf of one side or the other, so everything is still ahead. Whether this issue will be seriously discussed at the next meeting of the Collective Security Council in November of this year in Moscow is also a question; this is decided by the heads of state themselves. Let’s not rush [things],” he said.

“We have heard the statements made by [Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan]. I have always said that [there is an opinion] not only of the country’s leadership, but also of the Armenian people on various issues. Therefore, let’s not anticipate events,” the agency’s interlocutor emphasized.