Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Tuesday said Armenia will not host Russian-led military exercises for the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) in 2023.
According to Agence France-Presse, a French international news agency, Pashinyan also leveled criticism at Russian President Vladimir Putin during Tuesday's press conference for keeping a military presence in Armenia as well as for not offering more support in Armenia's dispute with neighbor Azerbaijan.
Armenia—which has been a close ally of Russia as a member of the Moscow-led CSTO of former Soviet states—has continuing tensions with Azerbaijan after the two countries engaged in a six-week war in 2020. In 2021, Armenia accused Azerbaijan of moving forces into its territory and demanded CSTO condemn the country.
"I think the important thing to note is that the Armenian PM has canceled the CSTO exercises in Armenia not because he wants to end Russia's role in Armenia, but as a signal that Russia is not doing enough to help protect Armenia against Turkish-backed Azerbaijan," George Mason University's Schar School of Policy and Government professor Mark N. Katz told Newsweek.
Katz added, "The problem, though, is that with Russian forces bogged down in Ukraine, Moscow really isn't in a position to do as much for Armenia it might have otherwise."
"Armenia expected concrete actions from its Russian partners and other partners in the field of security," Pashinyan said Tuesday of the 2021 incursion, according to Agence France-Presse. "This issue is important from the point of view of building further relations."
Pashinyan's remarks on Tuesday come after other recent public shows of frustration the prime minister has made toward Putin. Citing the CSTO's lack of response regarding Azerbaijan, Pashinyan refused to sign a declaration at a CSTO summit in late November and seemingly avoided Putin during a photo of CSTO leaders.
Pashinyan's decision regarding CSTO military drills ran contrary to a January 1 announcement from the Russian Ministry of Defense that stated Armenia would host the annual CSTO exercises in 2023.
Following Pashinyan's press conference, the Russian state-run news agency RIA Novosti reported Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia was in the process of clarifying the announcement and referred to Armenia as Russia's "close ally."
A spokesperson for the CSTO reportedly told the Russian state-run outlet TASS that he had received notice from the Armenian Ministry of Defense about the decision not to host military drills in 2023. The spokesperson indicated that the CSTO was working on proposals to hold the exercise in another country.
Pashinyan's announcement followed recent controversy over the presence of Russian military forces in his country. On Sunday, a protest organized by the National Democratic Pole Party took place in the Armenian city of Gyumri that demanded the withdrawal of Russian troops stationed at a base there. Local press outlets reported more than 60 demonstrators were detained.
Eurasianet reported that Pashinyan cited the presence of Russian troops in Armenia as a "threat" to his country.
"Recently Azerbaijan, in its contacts with Western partners, justifies its aggressive actions on the fear that Armenia and Russia are preparing joint aggressive actions against Azerbaijan and that they [the Azerbaijanis] are taking preventative measures," Pashinyan said.
After calling the accusations "absurd," Pashinyan reportedly related the claims to Russia's war in Ukraine.
"We call our Russian colleagues' attention to the fact that when they stay silent it means that Russia's military presence in Armenia does not only guarantee the security of the republic, but the opposite: It creates a security threat for Armenia," he said.
Katz said that even if Pashinyan has issues with Putin, he would be hard-pressed to find comparable support elsewhere. With NATO members unlikely to defend Armenia in any future conflict, Pashinyan's country "is simply not in a position to dispense with its Russian connection."
"If Russian forces actually left Armenia, then Yerevan would even more vulnerable," Katz said.
Newsweek reached out to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia for comment.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Jon Jackson is an Associate Editor at Newsweek based in New York. His focus is on reporting on the Ukraine ... Read more
